Harry Malfoy and Draco Potter
by mmrose
Summary: Harry is the proud, serious, and dangerous son of Lucius Malfoy. Draco is the funny, friendly son of James Potter. Eventually they will fight Voldemort together, but now they just need to survive Hogwarts. AU. HarryDraco
1. Chapter 1

Harry Malfoy and Draco Potter

Disclaimer: This is just a bit of silly fun, not at all associated with the real "Harry Potter" books/movies/multimedia empire.

Warnings: This story will (eventually) feature Harry/Draco slash. There will also be some Harry/Cho, Harry/Cedric, Draco/Oliver, in case you cannot bear to imagine them with anyone else.

Chapter 1 – Mismatched Marriages

I. Harry Malfoy

The Malfoy Prophecy Armband was a prized Dark family treasure that was kept in the secret room under the drawing room of Malfoy Manor. During the Christmas holidays of his fifth year at Hogwarts, young Lucius Malfoy took it without telling his parents. He was no good at divination and thought it would help with his homework. He tried it out on his first night back at Hogwarts.

The vision began with a red-haired Gryffindor girl, Lily Evans, one of Sirius Black's misfit friends. She appeared to be about four years older and at least twice as beautiful as she was now. She was wearing a wedding dress and veil.

So the prophecy was that Lily Evans would become gorgeous and marry someone. She was a filthy mudblood so Lucius would never want to touch her himself, but this information may be useful in the future. The vision wouldn't help much for Lucius's divination homework, but it was better than nothing.

But then the vision shifted. Evans was older and now standing over a crib. She leaned over the side and smiled at her baby, and she looked even more beautiful than before, three times as attractive as she was at age 15.

Wow. Lucius could never marry a mudblood, but maybe it would not completely taint the family name if he took her as a mistress… Maybe she would take her clothes off next.

Unfortunately the vision moved to the baby, a tiny infant only a few months old with no hair yet but very green eyes.

Lucius didn't know much about babies and he wasn't especially interested in Evans's kid. Wait, unless it was his, which it couldn't be because he would never have an illegitimate child. That would cause problems with inheritance, unless Lucius was very, very careful. Was this the message of the prophecy?

Evans was now speaking. "My son Harry will be the greatest hero in the wizarding world. He will be the most powerful wizard since Grindelwald. Lord Voldemort will be nothing compared to my son. He will determine the fate of the entire world. He will be our savior."

The baby squirmed and blinked, and Lucius decided that it was most definitely his son, definitely a Malfoy. Harry Malfoy, hero of the wizarding world. The vision faded, and Lucius knew he had work to do. The Malfoy Prophecy Armband was never wrong. Lily Evans was going to be his wife.

* * *

30 October, 1981 

Tonight was the big night: Lucius Malfoy would present his son Harry to Lord Voldemort to be appointed his heir.

Lucius had not told his wife what he had planned. Lily wouldn't understand. He did love his wife, in his way, but because of her unfortunate mudblood heritage, she would never understand the true state of the wizarding world or Lord Voldemort's message of hope. She thought that Lucius was selflessly risking his life to act as a spy on the Death Eaters for her friends. She was wrong.

Lord Voldemort appreciated Lucius much more than Dumbledore and his mindless minions ever did. When Albus Dumbledore said jump, Potter, Black, Longbottom, and the rest pushed and shoved each other for the chance to be the first to jump highest. No one in the Order of the Phoenix trusted Lucius. He was never given any responsibilities or important tasks. They merely tolerated him at the meetings because they liked his wife.

Lord Voldemort respected Lucius's ideas and listened to Lucius's suggestions. Such as letting certain, exceptional mudbloods live if they were able to prove their willingness to completely abandon the Muggle world, like his beautiful wife Lily did. And Voldemort was also in favor of letting Halfbloods become Death Eaters, which would be necessary if little Harry followed in his father's footsteps.

Lucius had been so impressed with Lord Voldemort's leadership that he had told him about his son's prophecy. Just as Lucius expected, Voldemort was not upset to hear that the child would become more powerful than he was. He saw this as a great opportunity, like Lucius did.

And so Lucius held his 16 month old son in his arms when he apparated to Riddle Manor. How odd. No one else was there. The presentation of Lord Voldemort's new heir was supposed to be a big event, with all the Death Eaters being there to see Lucius's triumph. Maybe Lucius had been told an early arrival time so they could prepare for the ceremony. The house elves would have a lot of work to do to prepare the Hall for the presentation. It was now completely dark, no chairs or tables set up, no banners or food to celebrate this great day.

A tall, hooded figure walked through the empty hall and stopped in front of Lucius. Lord Voldemort, at last. Little Harry squirmed in his arms. Lucius looked down at his darling son, with his mother's green eyes and his father's white-blond hair, and knew that this would be the happiest day of his life.

Lord Voldemort said, "Is that your son, Lucius?"

"Yes, my lord, this is Harry Malfoy." Lucius held his son so his master could see the child himself. "Would you like to hold him?"

Lord Voldemort looked at Harry and then shook his head no. "Place him on the floor and step away."

"On the floor?" He looked at the wooden floor. It looked reasonably clean, at least, but he had no idea why Lord Voldemort would want him to put his child on the ground. If he wanted to cast special spells on Harry, he could do it best by holding Harry himself. Lucius had cast hundreds of protection spells on Harry since his birth. Harry liked the feel of magic.

Well, Lord Voldemort was not very good with children. In fact, he had an alarming tendency to attack orphanages and kill everyone. Lucius had always been opposed to those raids and hoped to convince Lord Voldemort to change that part of his campaign against Dumbledore. It wasn't very good propaganda for their side.

Lucius did as Voldemort said, and put Harry on the floor and stepped back reluctantly. It didn't feel natural to let strangers cast anything on his son. He trusted Lord Voldemort with his life, and he knew that Harry had nothing to fear from the Dark Lord, but he thought of those orphanages and wondered if he should have kept quiet about Harry's prophecy until he was maybe 18-years-old.

Though he would never, ever admit it, Lucius was taken completely by surprised by what happened next.

Lord Voldemort raised his wand, pointed it at Harry Malfoy, and said in a cold, low voice, "Avada Kedavra."

Before he had even fully understood what had happened, Lucius dove down to fall in front of the bright green light. He was a father and he had to protect his son. But he wasn't fast enough. The curse missed him and hit Harry and then, if he could really believe his eyes, bounced back, barely missing Lucius again, and hit Lord Voldemort.

The killing curse bounced? Lord Voldemort used the killing curse? Harry deflected it? Lucius had no idea what was going on, but he knew he had to protect Harry and get them both out of there as quickly as possible. He rolled over so he could hold his son and keep his body between Lord Voldemort and Harry. He waited for whatever curse Voldemort would try next.

But nothing happened. There were no sounds at all.

After an eternity of waiting, Lucius called out, "Are you waiting for me to step back and give you another chance to kill my son? You tried to kill Harry!"

Nothing. Lucius moved slightly so he could get out his own wand. Not a sound. He couldn't even hear whether Lord Voldemort had moved since he had cast the curse. It was dead quiet and dark. Lucius held his son and waited. And waited.

"Lord Voldemort? My lord?"

He must be contacting others to help him! Lucius jumped up and turned with his wand pointed to where Lord Voldemort had been standing, but there was no one there. He cast a powerful "Lumos" that illuminated the entire hall.

"Fuck." Where the Dark Lord had been standing was now a pile of ash. Harry Malfoy had just killed Lord Voldemort by reflecting the killing curse. Lucius had to get to Albus Dumbledore fast, and he had better think of a good story even faster.

The prophecy was right. Harry was already the most powerful wizard ever.

* * *

II. Draco Potter 

James Potter thought he would get the perfect revenge on Lucius Malfoy for stealing his girlfriend by going after Lucius's former fiancée, Narcissa Black. She was so superior, so icy cold, so snobby, so Dark, so powerful, so beautiful, and so very, very angry that her engagement with the Malfoy family had been broken. The Blacks had legendary tempers, and Narcissa showed hers.

"I will go to Hogsmeade with you if you give me all of Lucius Malfoy's hair," she had declared to James when he asked her out.

James loved a challenge. He snuck into the Slytherin dorm one night. He even got Lucius Malfoy's eyelashes. Lily tried very hard to be angry with James, but they had been good friends even before they had dated and he knew she wasn't angry with him. She laughed and made him promise not to do that to her boyfriend again, unless she asked him to.

Narcissa Black accepted the box of hair like a trophy and let James buy her a cup of tea at Madam Puddifoot's. She did not let him kiss her or hold her hand. She hardly said anything to him, but she couldn't stop herself from smiling and even laughing at some of his jokes.

Getting Narcissa to laugh became a new challenge. Getting her to actually talk to him and treat him like an equal was an even bigger challenge. And getting her to marry him was his greatest victory ever. She was still cold and wicked, but she was his dark witch.

When Lily Malfoy came over to Godric's Hollow and announced that she was pregnant, Narcissa had said, "In that case, I will have a son, too."

Lily and James were both surprised by that. "You mean you're expecting, too?" Lily asked.

"I will be," she said. "Tomorrow." She looked at James, and he blushed. He came from a long line of Light wizards, and he was often taken by surprise by Dark magic that Narcissa grew up with. The next day, she most certainly was pregnant with the male heir to the Potter family.

James tried not to be bothered that his wife was so determined to out-do the Malfoys. He knew that she had not forgiven Lucius for choosing Lily over herself, but he hoped that Narcissa would give it up. Not only was she anti-Lily, she also became very anti-Voldemort and often assisted James in his auror missions.

Draco Potter was born on the last day of July to a couple who had survived three unsuccessful Death Eater attacks on their home. According to Albus Dumbledore, this meant that Draco was going to defeat Lord Voldemort. Narcissa was as close to being thrilled as James had ever seen her.

"It's too bad that we cannot tell the Malfoys the good news," she said. "They will be so happy that they can stop publicly supporting the losing side in the war."

Sirius told James that Narcissa really was happy as James's wife and that she probably really did love him. The Blacks have never been an openly affectionate family. It's just the way they were taught to behave. Anyway, if she really hated him, she would have killed him by now.

James was affectionate and loving enough for two. His wife was the most beautiful and most evil dark witch that ever lived – which was the sort of praise she liked the most – and his son was the most clever and most adorable baby ever. Narcissa worried about Draco's hair, which was even messier than his father's and required her to use even stronger charms to keep it styled. He had his father's dark hair and brown eyes, but everyone agreed that he looked just like his mother, the very fair skin, small pointy nose, and quick, wicked smile.

* * *

After the emergency Order of the Phoenix meeting on Halloween, 1981, Narcissa Potter told her husband, "Lucius is lying. He must be." 

"But Malfoy and Snape's Dark Marks have faded, and Dumbledore went there and saw the pile of ash himself. Voldemort is dead."

"Nonsense," she said. "Prophecies don't lie. Only Draco can kill him."

"It looks like Harry Malfoy beat him to it. How could anyone reflect the killing curse? I didn't know the kid was so strong. No wonder Lucius is so devoted to him."

"Lucius is a terrible father. He is treating his son like a pampered little prince. Harry will be intolerable. People may celebrate Harry Malfoy all they want now, but when they find out that Voldemort isn't really dead, they will see how much more special our son is."

James knew by now when not to argue with his wife, which was most of the time.

* * *

Draco Potter didn't understand why his father said that he had to invite Harry Malfoy to his eighth birthday party. He didn't like Harry Malfoy. He didn't even know him. He wanted to invite only Mrs. Malfoy. She was friends with his dad, and she was nice and funny and pretty, even though Draco's mother called her an awful, uncultured muggle. Draco's mother wasn't very nice about anyone except Draco, and that meant that she loved him very, very much. 

Harry Malfoy had saved the world when he was a baby, and he was still famous because of that. The Daily Prophet called him 'The Boy Who Lived'. Draco wanted to be famous, too, and he asked his mother if he could save the world and become just like Harry Malfoy. That was the wrong thing to ask his mother, because she didn't like Harry Malfoy and she did not want her only son wishing to be 'just like Harry Malfoy'.

"Does Harry Malfoy have to come to my party?" Draco asked his mother.

"Yes, unfortunately," his mother said. "His mother wants him to meet more children his age, and your father has agreed to risk all our lives by inviting the boy here."

"Will he try to kill us?" That sounded much more interesting than Draco's seventh birthday. No one tried to kill him then. He would definitely get into the Daily Prophet if he saved his family from a vicious attack by The Boy Who Lived.

"He won't try to kill us on purpose. He has problems controlling his magic when he's away from home. That's Lucius's fault, of course, for keeping him too much at home."

Draco's mother had a special expression whenever she mentioned Lucius Malfoy, like she was happily imagining his slow and gruesome death. Draco knew from the Daily Prophet that Mr. Malfoy was an important politician in the Ministry of Magic. The Potters always actively supported all his opponents from every party during Ministry elections.

Draco's dad said that Lucius Malfoy didn't deserve to be married to Mrs. Malfoy. Draco's mother said that he deserved to be thrown out of the Ministry, all his property taken away, and his family tossed into the grimiest streets of Muggle London. Mr. Malfoy was definitely not invited to Draco's party.

Draco's mother continued, "You must be very careful around Harry Malfoy. At some point during the party, he will have a major outburst of accidental magic that will destroy lots of valuable things, and then we have to all praise him for being freakishly powerful for his age."

"But it's my birthday. Shouldn't people say nice things about me?"

"Of course they will, dear, but you need to be prepared for Harry Malfoy. He is a family friend, and we must get used to him."

Harry Malfoy was not as impressive in person as he seemed in the Daily Prophet. He was just a boy. He wore grown-up style robes with the Malfoy family crest, and he looked very uncomfortable in them. He was supposed to be famous, but he seemed, well, shy.

"Thank you for inviting me to your party," he said very quietly and properly after their parents left them together.

"Thank you for saving the wizarding world from the evil Dark Lord," Draco said, which was what he always imagined saying when he finally met Harry Malfoy.

"That was when I was a baby. I don't even remember it."

Draco was waiting for the freakishly powerful accidental magic to blow him up, but Harry Malfoy didn't seem to be life-threatening at all. In that case, he would have to become Draco's newest best friend. He was the world-famous Boy Who Lived, after all. He could bring Draco along when he saved the world next, and then Draco would be in the Daily Prophet, too.

"Ask your dad to use a pensieve so you can see the memory of your great victory against the most feared Dark Lord since Grindelwald. My dad showed me the finals of the 1978 Quidditch World Cup with Professor Dumbledore's pensieve once. It was awesome."

Harry said, "I don't know if my dad has a pensieve."

Lucius Malfoy would probably not want to preserve the memory of all the wicked deeds he had committed in the Ministry. He must rob widows of all their money and feed orphans to werewolves. Why else would Draco's mother say that he deserved a cell in Azkaban? But Draco knew that he should not tell Harry the truth about his father.

"I bet there was tons of blood and guts everywhere. If you get one, I want to watch, too." Since Harry was Draco's newest best friend, Draco shared the super-big secret that his mother told him not to tell other people. Draco said in a lowered voice, "It's a secret, but Mother says that the Dark Lord will return and then I'll get to kill him, too."

"But Voldemort is dead," Harry said.

Draco briefly wondered whether Harry was too stupid to be his best friend. He said, "Now. But Mother says he has to come back, and then I'll kill him."

"But that's impossible. Dead people don't come back."

"My mother said so. Do you think she lied to me?" There was no mistaking the answer to that question. Everyone in the Potter family worshiped Narcissa Potter. She was the voice of reason and authority. But Harry Malfoy had not been in Godric's Hollow long enough to understand that important fact.

Harry said, "My mom said that your mom is scary and crazy."

If Draco Potter knew any painful hexes, Harry Malfoy would now be in serious pain. As an eight-year-old untrained wizard, he could only fight back with more insults. "No, she isn't. Aunt Bella and Uncle Sirius are crazy, but not Mother. She knows everything, and she says that your mom is a stupid muggle."

"You take that back!"

"She says your mom is awful and ugly, too. And she called you a freak."

Then came the inevitable Harry Malfoy accidental magic. Draco Potter was levitated to the ceiling and it took the adults at the party all afternoon to find a way to get him down. While on the ceiling, Draco decided that he did not like Harry Malfoy anymore. He was very glad when his mother brought him back to the floor.

Uncle Sirius was impressed by Harry Malfoy's strong early magic. Mrs. Malfoy laughed. Draco's dad thought Harry was hilarious, and he made certain that Harry Malfoy was invited to every one of Draco's parties after that.


	2. Hogwarts Year 1

Chapter 2 – Hogwarts Year 1

Draco Potter pretended that he didn't seen Harry Malfoy's distinctive white-blond hair on the platform at King's Cross station. He quickly boarded the Hogwarts Express before his father could make a big, tearful scene about how his little boy was finally growing up. His mother had said good-bye to him at Godric's Hollow because she hated train stations and because she didn't want to be embarrassed by her husband.

Draco dragged his trunk into an empty compartment and sat down. He was finally going off to school! He had been listening to his father and uncle's stories about Hogwarts for years, and now it was his turn.

His father gave him every precise instructions about how to deal with the Sorting Hat and get it to send him to Gryffindor. His mother told him that she would refuse to acknowledge him as her son if he got sorted into Hufflepuff. She had been a Slytherin, but Draco knew he had no chance to make it there. He was going to kill Lord Voldemort when he reappeared, and lots of the Slytherins had been on Voldemort's side in the war.

The compartment door opened and the Weasleys came in. Draco's mother thought the Weasleys were too poor and shabby to bother with, but Draco thought they were fantastic. Charlie Weasley was his hero, Bill was his god, the twins were the older brothers that he had always wished he had, and Ron and Ginny were the younger siblings he wished he had to torment. Percy was an aberration that proved that you should never judge someone by his family. Who would have guessed that a Weasley could be so boring?

Fred, George, and Ron sat down in the compartment while Percy fussed over their trunks and then whined about how he was going to his friends and they had to look after their trunks themselves. Draco hated Percy and hoped he would die when Lord Voldemort returned.

"Draco, will we really have to wrestle trolls when we get there?" Ron asked.

Draco had no idea what Ron was talking about, but the twins were grinning so it had to be good. "Yes, my dad told me all about them. We must battle to the death. The corpses of those who fail are eaten by the Giant Squid."

"But what do we fight them with?"

"Our bare hands," Draco said. But Ron looked so ridiculous and so gullible that Draco started to giggle, then laugh, and Fred and George joined in, too, and Ron knew he had been tricked yet again.

"You are not a nice person, Draco Potter," Ron grumbled.

The compartment door opened again, and Harry Malfoy peered in.

"Hi, sorry, is there room for me to sit?"

Draco was no longer in a laughing mood now. Harry Malfoy meant trouble, and he did not want to find himself floating on the ceiling or apparated to the Falkland Islands or, as happened twice, colored blue.

"Go away, Harry," Draco said. 'I don't want to show up at Hogwarts with my skin the wrong color."

He did feel a tiny bit guilty for being mean to Harry, who always gave him very expensive birthday presents and who could almost be considered good company when he wasn't turning people blue, but Draco was determined to make a good impression on people at Hogwarts. Harry got into trouble all the time thanks to his uncontrollable magic and his natural talent for mucking things up.

Harry also had the annoying tendency to ignore Draco's direct orders and do what he wanted, like sit down next to Draco and introduce himself to the Weasleys.

Ron was nearly speechless with awe. "You're… you're… wow!"

"Yes, he's The Boy Who Lived. Get over it." Draco hoped that the other people at Hogwarts wouldn't act like that around Harry. Harry would hate that, too. Draco would have to keep Ron away from Harry if he continued to act like a idiot.

The Weasley twins were not the sort to fuss over a celebrity and beg for autographs. They had only heard stories about the sort of things Harry Malfoy had "accidentally" done to Draco, and now they wanted to see a demonstration. George and Fred insisted that Harry concentrate on how annoying Draco was.

"That's not how it works," Harry said. "It's just accidental magic."

"That's why you're going to school, Malfoy," Fred said. "You'll soon be able to control it and turn Draco blue whenever you want to. That will be great."

Since the Weasleys had never met Harry, they asked about how he defeated Voldemort, and, of course, Harry gave the boring excuse that he was only a baby and his father wouldn't use a pensieve to show him the memory, no matter how much Draco begged. That meant that Draco had to tell the story of Voldemort's defeat, with more blood and scattered body parts than ever before.

The sorting did not include any trolls, much to Ron's disappointment. It was very boring and took forever. The Sorting Hat spent at least 10 minutes on Harry Malfoy, weighing the pros and cons of each house while Draco thought as loudly as he could, "HUFFLEPUFF! HUFFLEPUFF! HUFFLEPUFF!" Wouldn't it be hilarious if Harry were a Hufflepuff? Draco would laugh at him forever. In the end, unfortunately, the Hat went with Gryffindor. Soon it was Draco's turn.

He told the Hat, "I've thought about it, and I've decided that I'm perfect for Ravenclaw. OK?"

The Sorting Hat announced, "Gryffindor!" Stupid Hat.

* * *

Draco Potter made a terrifying discovery on the first morning that he woke up in Gryffindor: his mother was not there to do his hair. His dark hair looked like a rat's nest. It was awful, sticking up in every direction, chaos, disastrous, ugly, totally embarrassing. He tried to use the charm that she used every day on him, but it barely had any effect. This was very, very bad. 

Luckily Harry Malfoy's bed was next to his, and Harry was still asleep at 6 am when Draco made this dreadful discovery. Draco woke Harry up and said, "Do some good with your freakishly powerful magic. Make my hair be normal."

Harry blinked, looked at Draco's hair, and then smiled. "I like it this way. Is it naturally like this?"

"It's a curse on the Potter family. Some ancestor pissed off a pixie and we now all have messy hair. Mother can charm it, so you must be able to, too."

"I don't know anything about hair charms."

"Great. Some hero you are. I look like I just got struck by lightning, and you can't help. I'll go to Madam Pomfrey."

"The school nurse? For your hair?"

"This is an emergency! And I'll ask her to do my eyes, too. The vision charm will wear off soon."

"Your eyes?"

"I'm pathetically near-sighted, if you must know, but Mother fixes that every morning, too."

At breakfast Draco looked miserable. His hair was as messy as it was when he woke up, and now he was wearing a pair of very thick glasses with geeky black frames. The Weasley twins laughed so hard they could barely breathe. Harry said that if Draco taught him, he'd try to cast the charms.

"Mother says I shouldn't let anyone do them except her, and Mother is smarter than you are. This is all Dad's fault. He's the one with bad hair and bad eyesight. You are very, very lucky, Harry Malfoy. I would kill for your hair. _Kill_ for it. Really."

* * *

According to Harry Malfoy, the very best professor in Hogwarts was Professor Snape. 

"He tries to be mean and insult us, but you can tell that it's only his way of getting us to do our very best."

Draco said, "What I want to know is who does Professor Snape love more, your mother or your father? Or you think he now loves you the most?"

On their first day of class, Snape had told the entire class that Harry's mother was one of the smartest witches he had ever met and that she had a real gift with potions and everything else she tried. During the second class, Snape praised Harry for working hard and not taking his success for granted even though he is fortunate enough to be the only son of Lucius Malfoy, that great politician who has done so much for the wizarding world. He now called Harry his most promising student, and he kept on trying to convince him to change potions partners. He glared at Draco Potter and sometimes commented on his hair when it was especially bad.

Harry said, "I'll tell Father how great Professor Snape is in my next letter. Father must have been to school with him."

"Yes, those happy years when poor Snivellus was being terrorized by my father and Uncle Sirius. Why do you think he hates my mother, though?"

"Your mother is evil and scary."

"No doubt it's unrequited love."

Professor Quirrell was scared of Harry Malfoy, especially after Harry wrecked the DADA room in an outburst of accidental magic when he couldn't think of the answer to a question on a quiz. Quirrell was out to kill Draco Potter, but no one would believe Draco when he said so.

"When he looks at me, I know he is plotting my doom. I think he must be a Death Eater helping to resurrect Voldemort, and he knows that I'm the one who will kill him this time."

Harry laughed. "You are such a liar, Draco Potter."

"I can feel the hatred seeping out from his ugly purple turban. Maybe he has his Dark Mark on his forehead."

Professor Flitwick was dismissed as useless when he was unable to charm Draco's hair into some order. He put shields around Harry whenever they tried out charms in class. No one knew that a feather could be levitated with enough force to break a window.

Professor Binns was dead and therefore unfortunately immune to the Potter charm. Harry said that Binns was immune because there was no Potter charm.

Professor Sinistra liked Draco's father James and Harry's mother Lily, and she said that she had no idea why they didn't get married to each other. That idea disturbed Harry and Draco so much that they decided that she had to have serious mental issues. They swore to each other that they would never risk being alone in her presence.

Herbology meant dirt, and Malfoys were not comfortable around dirt. Harry's accidental magic always banished the dirt and weeds around him, thus making him the very worst herbology student ever. Draco loved to see Harry fail, but he didn't like Professor Sprout being mean to his friend. Only Draco was allowed to do that.

That left Professor McGonagall. Draco was determined to be her favorite student. She was more concerned about improving Harry's magical control before he seriously hurt someone, or, as Draco helpfully suggested, before Professor Sprout seriously hurt him.

* * *

The first flying lesson for the Gryffindor first-years came far too late for Draco Potter. The Gryffinder Quidditch team had already had its try-outs, and Professor McGonagall had refused to let Draco try-out, even though he was the son of James Potter and had been flying since he was barely walking. Draco had watched the Quidditch team practice, and he told Harry again and again that he would be a much better seeker than the one they had. 

"You can show them that next year," Harry said, completely missing the point, as usual. Draco couldn't wait an entire year to dazzle the entire school with his Quidditch skills. He wanted to join the team _now_.

Finally, the first-year Gryffindors were taken out for the flying lesson and given the awful school brooms that Draco would be embarrassed to fly under any other circumstances. It was inhumane to forbid first-year students from bringing their own brooms. Luckily Draco was amazing enough flier that no one would notice how bad the broom was once he could be in the air and have an audience.

The first part of his plan went exactly as expected. Harry Malfoy said "up" and his broom went straight up and hovered about 10 feet above his head. After surviving several weeks of Harry's freakishly powerful and disobedient magic, no one in Gryffindor was very surprised. Of course, Madam Hooch couldn't bring down the broom herself. Few grown-ups were as powerful as untrained, eleven-year-old Harry Malfoy. She forbade Harry from casting anything else on her dear, dear brooms, so he couldn't simply bring it down himself.

"I'll fetch Professor McGonagall," she said, but first warned and threatened everyone with lots of nasty things if anyone dared to fly during her absence.

The second part of Draco's plan was to find something small and glittery and round. He stole Neville Longbottom's Remembrall from his pocket and tossed it to Harry.

"When Professor McGonagall comes out, throw it up as high as you can."

"But that's mine!" Neville whined.

Harry said, "Let Ron. I can't throw very far. I'm no good at sports. You know that."

"But Ron could get into trouble. You won't because you're the Boy Who Lived. Come on, Harry." Draco mounted his broom and ignored Hermione Granger's shrieks about how he was going to get into trouble. "Throw it really far."

Harry couldn't, but he knew that Draco wouldn't listen to him. So when Professor McGonagall and Madam Hooch came back outside, Harry used a wordless spell to send the Remembrall flying up all the way to Gryffindor Tower. Finally his magic did what he wanted it to do! He had never tried to do a charm without saying the words. His father would want to know that he could do that.

The other students cheered as Draco made a daring loop and snatched the Remembrall before it could touch the ground. Draco went straight to Professor McGonagall to ask whether he could join the Quidditch team now. Harry knew she would have to find some way to say yes because Draco really was a fantastic flier.

Hermione Granger didn't care about flying. She was much more interested in what Harry had done, and she didn't stop nagging him until she had made herself into his second best friend.

---

During Draco's first Quidditch match as the new Gryffindor seeker, his broom nearly killed him, and Hermione set Professor Snape on fire. Harry hadn't been at the match, thanks to another detention from herbology after he had accidentally magically killed all the weeds from an important third-year project, but Draco and Hermione told him about it afterwards.

"Professor Quirrell must have done something to my broom," Draco said. He explained to Hermione, "He's out to kill me."

She was the smartest person in their year and knew that Draco was crazy and delusional. She told Harry, "I saw Professor Snape chanting something and looking at Potter very intently. He was casting the spell."

Harry knew that couldn't be right. "Professor Snape is the finest professor in this school. Yes, he hates Draco, but he wouldn't want to kill him. He wouldn't do that to me."

They all had to agree with that. Snape now called Harry "our modest, young celebrity" and tried harder than ever to get him to stop working with Draco Potter. But he wouldn't actually kill Draco for that.

"Well, setting him on fire still saved Potter," Hermione said. "Right?"

"Because Snape was sitting next to Quirrell, who is out to kill me," Draco said.

* * *

Draco did not like to share friends, and he still thought of Hermione Granger as an intruder, but she was a useful companion for Harry when Draco had to go off to Quidditch practice or a Quidditch strategy meeting or a Quidditch party or a special Quidditch dinner or a Quidditch pint of butterbeer. The Quidditch crowd was very intense, very tight, very old and sophisticated to an eleven-year-old. Draco loved it. 

Meanwhile Hermione and Harry worked hard every day on the problem of Harry's accidental magic. He had more power than he could handle at his age, and he didn't have the Manor or his parents to sooth and stabilize his magic. His magic decided what it would do for him, like kill all his herbology experiments. No one in the herbology class would work within six feet of him. Professor Sprout wouldn't let him enter parts of the greenhouse that grew especially rare and valuable plants. Harry needed all the help he could get if he wanted to have a chance at passing first-year herbology.

Draco was no good at research, but he was very good at finding Harry and Hermione and making them take breaks from their books to listen to his latest remarkable and fascinating Quidditch stories. Even scarily smart bookworms need to relax sometimes.

Draco found them in the library one evening, as usual. He said down at their table and didn't wait for them to say hi before he began his story. "You aren't going to believe that happened today after Quidditch practice. Fred asked Angelina out. Can you believe that? Did you know he fancied her?"

He was surprised and a bit annoyed that Harry and Hermione didn't even look up from a long letter that Harry was holding. Draco had been sitting with the Quidditch team during dinner and hadn't noticed that Harry had received any special mail.

Hermione looked up and said in her irritating, snotty way, "We're very busy tonight, Potter. If you want to help, stay. If you want to go on and on about Quidditch like you always do, go talk to someone else."

"Sorry, Draco, but this is important," Harry said far more politely and respectfully than his ill-bred friend. "My father needs my help."

That was serious news. Draco knew that Harry's greatest goal in life was to please his father. Harry was always talking about Lucius Malfoy. "Father says this", "I'm going to tell that to my father", "Father would not want me to do that" – it was annoying, but Draco put up with it because Harry was his friend.

Harry wrote to his father twice every week, but he was lucky if he got a short response once a month. His father was a busy and important man, and he had many plans and projects at the Ministry of Magic that demanded all his time. Harry was always making excuses for why he rarely heard from his father.

Harry thought he would win his father's praise and approval by getting very good marks. Draco suspected that Mr. Malfoy would rather hear that he was torturing small kittens, terrorizing the weak and cowardly, and gathering blackmail material on all his classmates' parents. But Draco still did not tell Harry that his father was a bad man. He didn't want Harry to hurt him.

Harry explained, "Father went to the Hogwarts Board of Governors meeting and heard that Dumbledore is hiding a very, very dangerous magical artifact in the school that must be destroyed at once. Father says that the Dark Lord's followers are after it."

"Professor Quirrell!" Draco gasped and was, of course, ignored.

"It's a rock, and it's guarded by many hard puzzles that Father says I should be able to use brute force to get past. Hermione says we should try to solve the puzzles so everyone won't know we were there, but the professors made them so they should be way too hard for us. We're only first-years. The rock is doing no good here, and Father says that it will have to be destroyed at the end of the year, anyway, but he says we cannot afford to wait. We must destroy it now."

"Before Quirrell can get it himself," Draco said.

This was even more interesting than Quidditch practice. Draco grabbed Mr. Malfoy's letter so he could read it for himself. It didn't sound anything like letters Draco got from his father. Those were short chatty notes about quidditch, his mother, and more quidditch. Mr. Malfoy wrote to Harry like he was an adult, and he used long words that Draco had never seen before. The letter gave very specific instructions about where the rock was and how to destroy it, but it didn't say what the rock actually was. Harry was being ordered around like he was a lowly member of his father's staff at the Ministry of Magic, someone who was expected to do whatever he was told, no questions asked. Draco didn't like the letter or the plan to destroy the rock or Mr. Malfoy at all.

After he had finished, Draco said, "What about Professor Dumbledore? The headmaster has decided that the special rock is safe here. What makes you think your father knows better?"

"Because my father _does_ know better than Dumbledore, especially about what old Death Eaters are planning to do. Father says that I'll probably get caught and get into a lot of trouble after I destroy the rock, but he'll come at once and help me."

Draco waited for Harry to talk some sense, or for Hermione Granger to point out that Harry was stark raving mad. Harry couldn't destroy an unknown magical artifact that Dumbledore himself was keeping safe. It was a crazy idea. But apparently it was up to him to be the reasonable one. What was the world coming to?

He waved the letter and said, "That is the most irresponsible thing I've ever heard a parent tell his son to do. Half the professors are already afraid of you. Now they'll all hate you, too. Your father won't be able to prevent you from being expelled if Professor Dumbledore thinks you deserve it. Granger, you must be trying to convince Harry not to do this, right?"

Hermione snatched the letter from Draco's hand and gave it back to Harry. She was actually enjoying the idea of getting expelled from Hogwarts before finishing her first year, all because Lucius Malfoy wanted his son to do his dirty work.

She said, "Harry's father would not lie to him about something important like this. Harry will need my help. He could use yours, too, but you're too much of a coward."

She was challenging him! Draco had been Harry's first friend, and he bet that Harry still liked him best. Draco almost said that he would help, too, but then he remembered all the times his mother said that Lucius Malfoy would go too far one day and leave his family to suffer the consequences. Draco had to prevent Harry from going after the magical rock. Mr. Malfoy wouldn't even tell Harry why it was so special and needed to be specially guarded in Hogwarts by all the professors and the headmaster. Draco didn't trust Mr. Malfoy.

Draco said, "I'm not helping. If I'm caught, I won't have Harry's father to save the day. He doesn't like me. I could get kicked off the Quidditch team."

That was not the right thing to say. Hermione sneered, "Oh sorry, that must end the discussion because there's nothing more important in Draco Potter's life than Quidditch." She grumbled, "I don't see why you are still his friend, Harry."

"You don't need to help me, Draco," Harry said, "but I have to act at once, before Professor Dumbledore suspects anything. Maybe you could stand outside the entrance to the puzzles and help us out if we get really stuck, if it's an emergency. We'll tell everyone you told us not to do it."

"Fine." Not because he wanted to, but because Harry was his friend and he needed his help. Maybe he could save Harry before it was too late. But he wouldn't help Hermione Granger. He hoped she was caught and expelled and forbidden from ever entering the wizarding world again.

* * *

Draco was petting Fluffy, the sleeping three-headed dog, when he heard voices coming from outside the corridor. Professor Dumbledore, Professor McGonagall, Professor Snape, and other voices! The teachers! 

Harry and Hermione had gone down to get the rock about fifteen minutes ago. How much longer would they need? Draco hadn't heard any noises from below the trap door since Harry had banished the devil's snare by the entrance. Finally his intolerance of ugly plants was useful.

The teachers must be coming because they knew that Harry was going after the rock. They would know Draco was helping if they found him with Fluffy, even though Draco wasn't really doing anything. He didn't want to get thrown off the Quidditch team for this. He would go down and tell Harry that the teachers were coming and then he'd hide until everyone went away. No one would have to know he was ever there.

Draco lifted the trap door and jumped down onto the hard stone ground, with no plants there to break his fall. Why couldn't Harry's anti-plant magic transfigure the devil's snare into a nice cushion? The puzzles were in a series of rooms with thick, stone walls. Harry had created new doorways through the rooms, so Draco could quickly bypass the puzzles and go straight to wherever Harry and Hermione were stuck.

He was about to go through Harry's doorway in a room full of potions when someone grabbed his arm.

"Potter, stop!" Hermione Granger was pale white and actually trembling. Now who was the coward?

"Where's Harry?" Draco asked. "The teachers are coming."

"Good! They'll save Harry."

"Save him?" If Harry needed help, why didn't he call for Draco? That was what Draco had been waiting for. "If Harry needs our help, we should be in there. We're big, brave Gryffindors. Who's hurting Harry? How did you escape?"

Hermione whispered, "There's something really, really wrong with Professor Quirrell."

"I already know that! Is he here? But isn't he scared of Harry?"

"He's with Harry, through that door. But there's something on his head."

"What's on his head?"

"Something _evil_."

Hermione was not going to be much help. Let the teachers find her and try to figure out why Hermione Granger now considered an ugly turban to be evil. Then they could expel her. Meanwhile Draco would save Harry and hide before he could be thrown off the Quidditch team.

Draco opened the final door. Holy Merlin! There was a face on the back of Professor's Quirrell's head! A weird, evil, talking face! No wonder Quirrell wore that ugly turban. Why on earth was there a face on the back of his head? This was not good.

Harry Malfoy had his wand pointed at Quirrell, Quirrell had his wand pointed at Harry, and the face was looking at the doorway that Draco had just come in through.

"Welcome, Mr. Potter, I was hoping you would join us," the evil face said and hissed and sneered and whispered. It was definitely not human. Draco had never seen anything like it in his life. Could it hurt him?

"Harry, what do I do?" Draco called out. "Did you find the rock?"

"Go away," Harry said, but Draco knew that he didn't mean it. He was trying to be noble and heroic, like the Boy Who Lived should. Draco was not the Boy Who Lived, so he was allowed to be unheroic and not do what the hero told him to do. Besides, Quirrell and his extra face knew he was there and could chase after him and hurt him.

"We have a problem that we hope you can solve," the evil face said, hissed, sneered, and whispered. "Look in the mirror."

Draco had no idea what was going on, but he did not think it was a good idea to take orders from the back of a professor's head. He looked over to Harry, and Harry nodded towards an antique full-length mirror that was facing opposite the real doorway.

OK, if Harry wanted him to, Draco would look into the mirror. Was there something wrong with his uniform? His ugly glasses? His awful hair?

But when he looked in the mirror, he didn't have bad hair or glasses. He looked normal! "Wow, my hair isn't messy and I don't have dorky glasses! What is this mirror? I think it's fantastic. I want one."

Professor Quirrell said, "I knew you were a shallow and stupid boy, Potter, but you cannot be _that_ stupid and shallow." That wasn't his normal voice at all. He wasn't stuttering. He sounded a lot more evil without the stutter and with the evil face on the back of his head. If people saw him now, they wouldn't laugh at Draco for saying that Quirrell was out to kill him.

Harry said shakily, "Is that all you see, Draco?"

"Yes." Draco turned back to Harry and Quirrell, and then realized there was something in his pocket. Somehow the mirror had put a rock in his pocket – the rock! The teachers were coming, and they would handle Quirrell and the evil face. He was there for Harry, and Harry needed the rock. If anyone asked him, he'd tell the truth. He didn't want the rock and he didn't know what it was. He just wanted to help Harry.

All the hours of quidditch practice had taught Draco how to handle small round objects well. He tossed the rock over Quirrell's head and into Harry's free hand. Harry would never be a seeker. He didn't catch it. The rock hit his left hand and then fell to the ground in front of him. Luckily Harry quickly realized what was going on, and he said some rock-demolishing spell that zapped the rock out of existence before Quirrell could stop him and right before the real door to the room was opened by Professor Dumbledore.

Draco did not know what happened next.

* * *

It was never good to wake up in the hospital ward. Usually Draco Potter was there because of another Quidditch accident. This time he was there because of Harry Malfoy and a face on the back of Professor Quirrell's head and a rock. 

Draco sat up and looked around the ward. Harry was in the bed next to him, still sleeping. Madam Pomfrey used her super-powers to sense that her patient was awake, and she came into the room with a disgusting potion for Draco.

"What happened?" Draco asked.

"Professor Dumbledore will explain," she said.

"Before or after we're expelled?"

"Expelled? Don't worry about that, dear. You're heroes." Madam Pomfrey smiled and Draco relaxed and inadvertently gave her the opportunity to force the nasty potion down his throat. She was an evil witch. She made him miss his mother.

The voices woke Harry up, too, and Madam Pomfrey had a potion ready to give to him that smelled of fresh strawberries and cream. Snape was always, always, always playing favorites.

"Are you all right, Draco?" Harry asked.

"I want your potion next time. Other than being poisoned by Professor Snape, I think I'm all right."

Madam Pomfrey said, "You were struck by some powerful magical aftershocks, Mr. Potter."

"That must be your fault, Harry."

"Sorry. What am I here for?"

Madam Pomfrey was probably under strict orders not to tell them anything, but everyone liked Harry Malfoy. "Magical exhaustion, Mr. Malfoy." It must have been a lot of magic to have an effect on freakishly powerful Harry Malfoy. No wonder Draco was in bed from the aftershocks.

Harry said, "Can I see my father, please? Or can I call him by floo? I really, really need to talk to my father."

"After Professor Dumbledore sees you," Madam Pomfrey said. Draco knew that wouldn't be good enough for Harry, but before the argument could continue, the headmaster came in, smiling. He couldn't really be _happy_ that Harry had destroyed his precious rock because Lucius Malfoy told him to.

"How are you both feeling? You are looking well." He conjured a chair to sit between their beds. Harry sat up in bed and looked ready to get out and run. Mr. Malfoy didn't like Professor Dumbledore, so neither did Harry. Draco trusted the headmaster, and he knew he'd have no chance of escape if he tried. Professor Dumbledore was a family friend, and he was much, much more powerful than Draco.

"Can I see my father, sir?" Harry asked. "Please? He can explain what I was doing. I'm sorry, sir, for ruining your puzzles and destroying your rock, but it was for the best."

Dumbledore smiled more. It was his senile-grandfather act. He was waiting for Harry to confess everything to the harmless old man. Draco had seen this before.

Before Harry could get himself or Lucius Malfoy into trouble, Draco said, "Madam Pomfrey says we're heroes. Why, professor?"

"Harry defeated Lord Voldemort, again," Dumbledore said.

"Voldemort?" Draco repeated. "Quirrell? But—but—" If Voldemort came back, it was supposed to be _Draco_ who defeated him! It wasn't right.

"The face on the back of Professor Quirrell's head was Voldemort," Harry said. "Sorry for not listening to you about Quirrell, Draco."

At least that was something to be happy about. Draco had proven that he had brilliant instincts about where true danger lies. That still didn't make it all right that Harry Malfoy had defeated Voldemort again and all Draco did was find a rock and faint from magical aftershocks.

There was something else that didn't make sense. Draco asked, "Why did I find the rock? It just appeared in my pocket."

Dumbledore smiled even more. "You were the only one who did not want the stone. Professor Quirrell wanted to use it, and Harry wanted too strongly to destroy it."

"Why did the mirror show me with good hair?"

Dumbledore chuckled and Harry laughed, too. Harry said, "I can't believe that was really all you saw. It's supposed to show you your deepest desire."

That made sense. Draco hated his messy hair. It was by far the worst thing that had ever happened to him.

Dumbledore said, "It confirmed what we all already knew about you. You have always been a very happy child, Draco. You have a loving family, good friends, and now a place on the Gryffindor Quidditch team. What else can you want?"

Draco decided to interpret Dumbledore's little speech as a compliment. He had everything he wanted in life, and he knew it. And the school year was almost over, so he could go home and see his mother and learn how to cast the spell to style his hair himself and get rid of the glasses. Then when he looked in the special mirror, all he would see would be his normal reflection.

He didn't need to ask what Harry saw in the mirror. The love and approval of Lucius Malfoy. Harry would probably sneak out every night to look in the mirror if he could. Draco asked, "How did you know about the mirror, Harry?"

"Hermione and I found it months ago."

"And you didn't tell me?"

"You were busy with Quidditch. You always are." Harry turned back to Dumbledore. "Can I see my father now?"

* * *

Thanks to the Voldemort/Quirrell situation, everyone approved of Harry Malfoy's destruction of the Philosopher's Stone. Draco had actually held the secret to eternal life in his hand, and he had thrown it to Harry to destroy! He felt like such an idiot. He would never destroy another magical artifact without knowing exactly what it did. 

Hermione Granger did not get expelled. Neither did Harry or Draco. They all got lots of points for Gryffindor and were the real reasons why Gryffindor won the house cup at the end of the year. Gryffindor also won the Quiddtich Cup. Overall, Draco Potter thought it was a great finish to their first year at Hogwarts.

Lucius Malfoy sent Harry a short letter congratulating him for the destruction of the Philosopher's Stone and the defeat of Voldemort. Harry said that that was enough, but Draco knew that Harry had hoped that his father would come to Hogwarts himself. Harry worked extra hard for his final exams, but he still failed herbology spectacularly.

"Your father won't care that you can't grow weeds," Draco said.

"It's not about herbology. It's about being the best."

Harry carefully styled his short white-blond hair and wore his finest Malfoy dress robes on the train from Hogwarts. He looked like the perfect wizarding hero, but he didn't feel like one.


	3. Hogwarts Year 2

Chapter 3 – Hogwarts Year 2

Draco's twelfth birthday party was the first time all summer that Draco saw Harry Malfoy. Harry looked different. He was wearing his usual prissy, dark blue Malfoy dress robes, and his short white-blond was as neat and perfectly styled as ever, but he was actually tanned, and there were unmistakable freckles across his nose. He had grown at least an inch. It was a miracle: Someone let Harry Malfoy outdoors over the summer.

"What happened to you?" Draco asked. "You have freckles."

"I've been owling you for weeks about my herbology tutor Kenneth. I'm outside covered with dirt all day. It's awful."

Poor Harry had been sending three or four owls a week complaining about horrible Kenneth, who would not listen when Harry tried to explain what the house elves would do for them in the gardens, like carry heavy bags of mulch and handle the smelly fertilizer. In his owls Harry also complained about the experts in magic control theory who came to study Harry and pretend to be helping him. Draco tried to be a sympathetic friend, but he was busy with keeping in shape for Quidditch and couldn't be expected to respond to every owl from Malfoy Manor.

Hermione must have also been getting Harry's desperate herbology owls, because her first question when she joined them was, "Did you pass the Ministry's first-year herbology equivalence exam yet, Harry?"

"Yes, perfectly." Harry did not sound especially proud of the accomplishment.

"You mean you no longer kill weeds with your glorious presence?" Draco would lose his primary form of entertainment in herbology if Harry became competent in the subject.

"I took the exam at the Manor. Father arranged it. I still kill plants outside the Manor." Harry quickly looked around to check that no one was close enough to hear, then said quietly, "Mum took me to visit her muggle sister in a horrible muggle neighborhood in Surrey. They are awful to Mum and me. I killed their entire ugly garden, though they don't know that it was my fault. Or they can't prove it. Mum and Kenneth had to fix everything after I left."

"Your mother actually sees her muggle family?" Draco asked in a normal volume. It's not like Harry's herbology disasters were a big secret.

"Shh!" Harry hissed. He said in a whisper, "Father doesn't know about the visits. He would not approve. But the Dursleys are my family, so I must see them and learn what I can do for them. Father has been busy attending to important business in Albania all month."

"He'll love your freckles," Draco said. He would not mention that they made Harry look more like his mother, Mrs. Lily Malfoy, who was one of the most beautiful women in the Wizarding World. Not that Draco thought that they made Harry look _cute_, but, well, Draco wouldn't be surprised if other people thought so.

No birthday party would be complete without lots of presents. Draco received Quidditch-related presents from all his school friends and relatives except Harry and Hermione, of course. Hermione gave him the ironic present of a study planner and Harry gave him a Dark artifact that looked like a normal leather-bound journal.

"I know you were disappointed that we had to destroy the Philosopher's Stone last year. Now you can have your very own evil Dark artifact," Harry told him.

Harry had waited to give Draco his present when they were alone. Obviously one did not tell other people when one had a rare, dangerous, powerful Dark artifact. It was the coolest present Draco had ever received in his life.

"What does it do? Where did you get it?"

"Father gave it to me. He said it was useless rubbish from the Malfoy vaults and gave it to me to destroy for practice. It has very strong protection charms on it. I don't know what it does. It will probably try to kill you if you use it. That's what most Dark artifacts do."

Draco intended to make a careful and thorough examination of the Dark journal and its evil magical properties in August before they returned to Hogwarts, but he was very, very busy with Quidditch training and reading his Quidditch strategy books and talking to his dad about his Quidditch glory days at Hogwarts. But Draco made certain he brought the evil journal with him to Hogwarts.

* * *

Draco Potter was disappointed that he had not been named Quidditch captain yet, but Oliver Wood refused to graduate or resign or admit his obvious inferiority compared to Draco. He did promise to let Draco help out during try-outs.

Draco talked about Quidditch with Oliver for most of the Welcoming Feast, then he came over and sat next to Harry. "If you wanted to be on the Quidditch team, Harry, you should have told me. We could have trained together."

Harry was confused, but he often was when Draco started talking about his most favorite subject. "I hate flying. You don't want me on the team. I'd accidentally banish the bludgers to Newcastle."

Instead of agreeing and predicting more Harry-related disasters, like he usually would, Draco shook his head and smiled. "You can drop your I-hate-Quidditch act. I should have noticed last year that you were madly jealous of me."

"No, I wasn't. And it's not an act. I hate Quidditch."

"Oliver Wood already told me about the letter he got from your father. You could have just told me you wanted to be on the team and I would have taken care of everything."

"My father wrote to Oliver Wood? About Quidditch? But my father doesn't like Quidditch. He only goes to professional games when the Minister is there."

"Apparently he thinks it's a necessary part of our education at Hogwarts, and he wants to guarantee that his son has the opportunity to participate."

"What? He told Oliver Wood that?"

"He didn't just say that. He also promised the enitre team new Nimbus 2001 brooms if we let you join."

"What?"

"Congratulations, Harry Malfoy. You're our new keeper."

"What? I—I— No! Hermione! Help! Which one is the keeper?"

Draco had underestimated Harry's acting skills. He genuinely did look surprised and horrified by the news. He must have been practicing on his broom over the summer. Or at least Draco hoped he had, because Harry really had been terrible in their first-year flying lessons.

* * *

According to Draco Potter, the new DADA Professor Gilderoy Lockhart was exactly what Hogwarts needed. He was a style icon that they could all look up to and learn from. He wore a different, brightly colored robe every day. He had perfect hair, truly perfect. And his smile! It couldn't be natural. It was more than natural. It was truly _super_-natural.

"Maybe he will have a positive influence on the rest of the teaching staff," Draco said. "Look at Snape's hair and Dumbledore's robes. Do you think the headmaster is colorblind?"

"Lockhart is an idiot," Harry said.

"Of course, he's useless as a teacher, but we are here to learn more than facts for exams. We are learning about life, and Professor Lockhart has a lot to teach us about that. That smile!"

"I don't want lessons on how to smile or how to be an annoying fraud. There's no way he's done a quarter of the things in his books."

Harry was obviously jealous because he no longer had the best hair in the school. Draco did not tell Harry that, because he did not want Harry to know that he had the second-best hair. It was a distinctive blonde-white color and it always stayed flat and in place and looked like it was carefully styled with lots of magical gel when really it just did it by itself. Harry's excess magic did more than remove dirt.

Professor Snape begged Harry Malfoy to choose a different potions partner than Draco Potter, but Draco refused. He knew Snape would fail him if he wasn't working on wonderful, perfect Harry Malfoy's potion assignments.

Then came the much dreaded herbology class. Harry had been practicing being dirty all summer. Now was the time to test whether he had truly learned anything since the unfortunate accident at his aunt's muggle garden.

Mandrakes were ugly and loud and disgusting and dangerous. Harry's accidental magic killed five in the first class, and he was not sorry when he was thrown out of the greenhouse for the rest of the lesson. He was less happy when Professor McGonagall told him that Professor Sprout had requested that he be banned from taking herbology for the rest of the year.

"Is that possible?" he asked.

"You have the worst case of magical incompatibility with ugly plants that we have ever heard of. You still must learn the theoretical component of the course. Professor Sprout does not have the time to teach you separately."

"If you give me books to read, I'll do my best to learn the material myself, without killing any more of Professor Sprout's weeds."

"We must find someone willing to teach you."

Professor Snape said it would be an honor. He would also help Harry with his magical control. This was much better than hauling manure for awful herbology tutor Kenneth. Professor Snape wouldn't be using Harry as a case study for his next book on magical control theory. It was the perfect arrangement, and Harry immediately wrote to his father all about it.

"Let me guess," Draco said after Harry's first herbology session with Snape. "He tells you that you're great, your father's great, and your mother's great. You tell him that you think he's great, too. Then you hug and eat ice cream sundaes."

"We do magic and we talk. He's a good listener. He really seems to understand me. I told him about the Quidditch situation. He thinks you should give back the brooms and let me off the team. I don't deserve to be on it. It's not fair to everyone else."

"He's trying to sabotage us. Well, you can tell him during your next bonding session that I'm too smart to fall for his ploy. We're keeping the brooms, and you're going to be the best keeper ever. Or at least you're going to be passably good. Well, you'll show up to the matches on time."

* * *

Before Harry Malfoy had joined the Quidditch team, Quidditch practice had been the highlight of Draco's life. Now he could barely survive an entire practice. The only thing they ever did was train Harry as keeper. It was hopeless. Bludgers and quaffles were supposed to be impervious to magic, but they would all vanish whenever they got too close to Harry. His excess magic protected him from large, fast-moving objects aimed at his head. They had two quaffles specially charmed by the headmaster so that Harry couldn't accidentally destroy. He also couldn't stop them. He'd dodge out of the way and let them pass through the goal.

"Are you even trying?" Draco hollered after Harry missed yet another easy shot.

Harry was a bad flier, too. He managed to become even more awkward and uncomfortable on a broom than he was during their first-year flying lessons. He also didn't even know the rules of Quidditch or how the scoring system worked. He was the worst Quidditch player ever.

But those Nimbus 2001 brooms were beauties. Draco couldn't give his up, and he knew the rest of the team felt the same way, otherwise they would have revolted and demanded a new keeper weeks ago.

They would never win if they kept Harry on the team. But if he could become a semi-decent player, they would demolish all the other teams because of their awesome new brooms. Why couldn't Harry be semi-decent? Would it be worth a few more practices, or was he really a lost cause? Draco couldn't throw his best friend off the Quidditch team and humiliate him in front of the entire school. But if he let Harry play, he would humiliate himself on the pitch by being such a terrible keeper, and Gryffindor would lose the match.

Draco was confused and conflicted. He had never felt like this before. He was used to having his mother or Professor Dumbledore or Harry make the important decisions in his life for him. Now he had to think and act for himself, and he didn't like it.

He heard people say that they felt better about things after they wrote everything down. Draco would try that, too, but somewhere safe that no one else would see. Then he noticed the evil journal. Harry said that it would try to kill him if he used it, but Harry didn't really know what it was for. It looked normal to Draco.

_'Harry Malfoy is the worst Quidditch player in the world. The world would be a better place if he could become mortally wounded and never fly again.'_

Being mean and nasty did make Draco feel better. He could see why his mother made so many cruel remarks about everything. He wrote more.

_'Maybe not mortally wounded, but he wouldn't miss his legs. He'd float to class and float to the library and no one would ever make him dig in dirt again. But he would need legs if he had to defeat Voldemort again.'_

The journal then wrote back, _'Who is Harry Malfoy?'_

An enchanted diary! And Lucius Malfoy thought it was rubbish? He was probably talking to the soul of a dead murderer. This was the coolest present ever. Draco knew it was very dangerous, and he knew that it really would try to kill him, but for now he knew that it had to be kept secret.

He wrote, _'Harry Malfoy is an annoying, ugly git who cannot fly or catch a quaffle. He killed Voldemort when he was a baby, and he can't even remember it.'_

_'How did he kill Lord Voldemort?'_

Draco created his most gruesome and violent version of the story ever. Then he felt oddly tired.

* * *

The next day, Harry and Draco were walking together to Astronomy in a quiet, little-used corridor that Draco claimed was a clever short-cut. They were very successfully avoiding the crowds of other students hurrying to their class. No one was around.

Harry suddenly jumped back and grabbed Draco's arm. "Did you hear that?" he asked. "What was that?"

"Hear what?"

"The hissing voice saying 'kill, kill, kill' over and over again." Harry reached out and ran his hand along the wall. "It sounded like… like it was coming from inside the wall."

"When?"

"Just now." Harry pressed his ear against the thick, stone wall, as if he could hear the stones talking. He looked ridiculous and Draco had to laugh.

Harry was confused for a moment, then very, very annoyed. "Ha ha, you caught me, Draco. This is one of your stupid pranks, isn't it? Fred and George Weasley are hiding around the corner pretending to be monsters."

"Um, no, actually I think you've just gone insane. Finally. Now let's go talk to Madam Pomfey and start on the paperwork to get you committed to St. Mungo's. Hearing voices in your head isn't good."

"Very funny. I'll get you back for this, Potter."

Draco yawned and said, "You do that. Let's go to class."

The next time Harry heard voices, he told Hermione and she started to read muggle books on schizophrenia. Draco thought that was hilarious, and he wrote all about it in his evil journal.

Harry's Quidditch skills did not improve over the next few weeks, but he discovered a new talent for creating semi-plausible excuses for why he had to skip practice. Without Harry, the team could do serious flying and create elaborate new moves and attack strategies. Quidditch was fun again.

The team got a very lucky break in time for the first Quidditch match. Harry had broken his arm during DADA when courageously defending the class from another one of Professor Lockhart's class demonstrations gone wrong. Lockhart 'healed' Harry by removing all the bones in his arm, requiring him to spend the entire Quidditch game in the hospital wing having his bones painfully re-grown. All the Gryffindor girls cooed over Harry and sent him chocolates and get-well-soon cards.

Gryffindor won the game with their last minute replacement keeper. Draco had finally found a use for Ron Weasley.

* * *

**"THE CHAMBER OF SECRETS HAS BEEN OPENED, ENEMIES OF THE HEIR, BEWARE."**

Harry, Draco, and Hermione were the first students to find the message written on the wall in blood next to the petrified cat. Hermione immediately tried to help the cat. Draco had never liked Mrs. Norris, but he didn't want her to be dead.

Harry was too focused on the writing on the wall to notice the cat. He knew exactly what the message meant. "I have to floo my father. Now."

"Shouldn't we tell the teachers? I can't un-petrify Mrs. Norris," Hermione said. "It must be very strong magic."

Draco didn't see why the cat was important or why Harry needed to tell his father about weird graffiti. He asked, "What's the Chamber of Secrets? Something evil?"

Harry nodded. "It's very evil. Father told me about it. It's a hidden chamber in Hogwarts made by Salazar Slytherin. It has an evil monster that will kill those unworthy to study magic, which means muggle-borns and blood traitors and whoever else is in his way."

That didn't sound very good. Draco knew that his parents were called blood traitors by his mother's evil Black relatives, and that probably meant that the monster would think he was a blood traitor, too. Hermione also didn't seem very happy to hear about the muggle-born-killing monster.

"Who is the heir?" Hermione asked.

"The heir of Slytherin," Harry explained. "He's the only one who can open the chamber. The only known heir of Slytherin was Voldemort. I'll go find Professor Snape. He'll let me use his floo."

Voldemort was back and writing messages in blood on the walls of Hogwarts about killing people? That was creepy but definitely cool. This time Draco would finally have his chance to defeat Lord Voldemort himself. He wouldn't write that in his evil journal, though. Evil, deadly Dark artifacts would probably want to help Voldemort win.

Harry went off to find Professor Snape, and Hermione stayed with Mrs. Norris. Draco was feeling very, very tired. He went back to his dorm to take a long nap.

* * *

Lucius Malfoy came to Hogwarts directly from Albania. He took the lead of the entire auror investigation. Draco didn't know what Mr. Malfoy's real position in the Ministry of Magic was, but it must be very, very important.

Mr. Malfoy went out to the gamekeeper's hut with several vials of veritaserum and no proper authorization forms. Hermione said that it was illegal to conduct interrogations under veritaserum without a court order, but Harry told her that his father knew how to do his job without her help. He also levitated her six feet off the ground and turned her green, but afterwards he said that he had not done that consciously. It was only his accidental magic. After that, no one dared to say anything remotely negative about Lucius Malfoy in Harry's presence.

Whether his interrogation was strictly legal or not, Hagrid was quickly and permanently cleared of all involvement with the Chamber of Secrets. He told Mr. Malfoy that all his roosters had been killed the night before the 'chamber' graffiti had appeared. Lucius Malfoy announced that the monster from the chamber was most likely a basilisk, and he brought in highly-skilled basilisk hunters into the school.

They still needed to identify who within the school was responsible for opening the chamber. Mr. Malfoy forced all the students take family heritage potions to guarantee that none was related to Slytherin. A few long-lost distant cousins were discovered and several old family scandals were exposed, but there were no new heirs of Slytherin. It could only be Voldemort, but he was dead.

Mr. Malfoy stayed in Hogwarts while he continued his investigation. Harry ate dinner at the teacher's table between Professor Snape and his father every evening. It was great.

But all happy family interludes have to come to an end. It was time for the second Gryffindor Quidditch match, and Mr. Malfoy told Harry that he would be there to see his son's first game.

"I'll fake an injury," Harry said during breakfast on the morning of the match. "I'll say I fell and now I have a concussion. Madam Pomfrey wouldn't risk letting me play. She kept me out of the first game. She'll do it again."

Hermione said, "Why don't you tell your father that you hate the game and are terrible at it and don't deserve to be on the team?"

"Stop undermining Harry's self-confidence, Granger," Draco snapped. He used his most soothing voice with his teammate: "You don't need to worry, Harry. You just have to show up on time and wear your uniform. Then I'll catch the snitch and we'll win."

Draco had written in his evil journal again last night and had come up with the plan. He would catch the snitch before Harry had time to embarrass himself. Simple.

He had recently learned that his evil journal had a name: Tom Riddle. He had never heard of the Riddle family. That probably meant that Tom had been a muggle-born. Draco didn't want to make Tom feel insecure about his family heritage, so he didn't ask Tom any personal questions. Besides, he was the spirit of an evil journal. He wasn't a nice person.

Whoever he was, Tom Riddle had approved of Draco's Quidditch plan. Tom's alternative plan was to murder Harry and hide his corpse in a secret chamber in the school where no one would ever find it. Tom was very funny.

But Draco did not have a chance to carry out his brilliant plan. Little Colin Creevey was petrified, and the game was canceled. How convenient. Draco wondered whether he could blame Harry for that.

Professor Dumbledore said that they needed mandrakes to un-petrify Creevey and that they would wait until the end of the year for Professor Sprout's mandrakes to be ready. Wait all year for a couple of plants? That was the dumbest thing Draco had ever heard. Mr. Malfoy bought a couple of full-grown mandrakes and had Colin Creevey revived and interrogated the next day.

Colin Creevey was a useless witness, but his brush with death made him into an instant minor celebrity in Gryffindor. He seemed to think that that made him worthy of being friends with Harry Malfoy.

"Your father saved me," Colin told Harry. How sneaky of him to use Harry's father to get on Harry's good side. Most people in the school were terrified of Lucius Malfoy and thought he was there to help the monster pick out its next victims.

"Father said that he was repaying the school for the mandrakes that I killed in herbology," Harry said modestly, but he obviously thought that his father was a heroic savior, too.

Colin's existence was tolerated when he had his camera. He said that Harry and Draco were very photogenic. Harry said that there were already too many pictures of him thanks to the whole Boy-Who-Lived thing, but Draco didn't mind posing when Colin needed a model. But there was still the problem of his awful messy hair.

When you have a problem at school that you cannot solve yourself, you should ask for help from a teacher. Last year Draco had been disappointed by the lack of hair-related assistance he had received from the teaching staff, but this year they were privileged to have Professor Lockhart.

"I don't know what to do with my hair," Draco confessed after class one day. "You are so knowledgeable about velvet and ruffles. You are my only hope in this fashion-impaired school. Do you think there's anything I can do to make it bearable? I've considered shaving my head completely, but it gets very cold in Scotland during the winter."

Professor Lockhart thought long and hard about the problem, and then came up with a brilliant solution. He took out a copy of the newest issue of _People_ magazine, the Wizarding edition, from his desk.

"Look and learn, Mr. Potter," he said. He flipped through the magazine and showed Draco several pictures of hot young rock stars and actors. "Look at their hair." It was choppy, different lengths, messy, asymmetric, wild, floppy.

"They've been cursed by pixies, too?" Draco hadn't realized that it was such a common problem among the rich, famous, and cool.

"No. They are stylish. You have 'bed head' hair. When you are older, it will look sexy."

"Why? How?"

"I cannot teach you everything. Some things you must discover yourself."

Professor Lockhart was very, very wise, and Draco would have to trust him until he was older and sexier.

* * *

Hermione saved the day for the Quidditch team. In order to better understand why Draco said Harry was such a terrible player, she read the complete Quidditch rule book, volumes 1-5. And in volume 4, page 2051, she found a very important rule: It was illegal to have an unrepentant murderer on your team. Having an intimidating, cold-blooded killer would give your side an unfair advantage.

"Brilliant!" Draco said. "Harry, go kill Colin Creevey."

"He's already a cold-blooded killer," Hermione said in her special Draco-Potter tone of voice, as if she were talking to the stupidest person alive. In fact, she did think that Draco was the stupidest person alive. She had laughed a lot when Draco had announced to the entire house that he had 'bed head' hair that would magically become sexy when he was a famous rock star.

She said, "Harry has killed the Dark Lord twice. Remember, Potter?"

"I don't repent for that at all," Harry said. "I can't believe I didn't think of reading the stupid rule books myself. Thanks, Hermione."

All of Gryffindor rejoiced when Draco announced that Harry was disqualified to be on the Quidditch team, thanks to Hermione. Ron Weasley was made the new team keeper, and Harry said that they could keep the new brooms. Ron was so happy that he proposed marriage to Hermione. She blushed. Draco kissed Hermione and then Harry and then Oliver Wood and then his Nimbus 2001. The Quidditch Cup would be theirs.

Two weeks later, the Gryffindor won their third match against Slytherin. Now that she knew all the rules, Hermione claimed that she enjoyed the watching the game. She certainly knew about everything the Gryffindor keeper had done and all the great saves Ron had made. Harry was not at the match. He was being lectured by his father for giving up on the Quidditch team. Malfoys never quit.

Now that his Quidditch problems had been resolved, Draco didn't think he would need his evil journal anymore. But then he'd find himself taking it out of his trunk and opening it up and writing to Tom Riddle more. He felt uneasy if he did not write in his evil journal. Some days he felt so tired before he went to bed that he couldn't imagine having the strength to even open his trunk to get the book, but then the journal would be in his hands and he'd be writing in it in bed, with the curtain closed so no one else could see his awesome Dark artifact.

He would wake up in the morning with very cold feet and his journal hidden under his pillow. And he would feel very, very tired. Harry worried about him, and because Harry worried, Hermione worried, and because Hermione worried, Ron Weasley worried, and that meant the rest of the Weasleys worried and everyone else on the Gryffindor team. They had worked too hard to get rid of Harry to now need to worry about their seeker's health.

Meanwhile more students were petrified and then un-petrified with expensive mandrakes. Mr. Malfoy brought in more security and basilisk experts, but no one could summon or control the monster. Not even Harry's super-powerful magic could help.

Harry still sometimes heard the strange voices in the walls. Hermione told him that he shouldn't listen to the voices in his head, especially when they were talking about killing poor, defenseless people. Draco was too exhausted to even mock Harry for going insane.

* * *

One morning Draco did not wake up cold and exhausted in his bed with his evil journal. He was colder than he had ever been and weaker than he could remember, but he was not in bed. He was somewhere _evil_.

There was a cold, damp, stone floor. There were big scary snake statues. There was an even bigger snake monster on the ground near him. Standing in front of him was a young, handsome dark-haired student that Draco had never seen before. The stranger was wearing Slytherin robes, but the cut and style were all wrong. He was looking down at Draco and smirking.

Draco was too weak to sit up and way too weak to be polite. "Get help. I'm really sick."

The boy did not seem remotely concerned with Draco's condition. He said, "Do you recognize me, Draco? I'm your friend from the journal. Tom Riddle."

Oh fuck. Draco was doomed. He had summoned the evil spirit from the Dark journal. He should have never used the journal. Harry had warned him that it would try to kill him. Now he was going to die, and Harry would get in trouble with his father, and Tom Riddle would take over the world.

"Where are we?" Draco managed to croak out.

"The Chamber of Secrets."

Double fuck. Draco was going to die here and no one would even be able to find his body.

"Let me go, Tom. I'll help you more once I'm well again. I'm really, really sick."

Tom shook his head. "You are not sick. You're dying."

Triple fuck. Quadruple fuck.

Tom continued, "I have been absorbing your strength and magic through the journal. You have been very easy to control. You have opened my chamber and killed those roosters and released my monster."

"No I didn't. That was Voldemort."

Tom laughed especially evilly. "Did your parents teach you anything about Lord Voldemort? He was a student at Hogwarts over 50 years ago. He was a Slytherin. He was a very good-looking, charismatic boy, an excellent student, already a master manipulator."

"You mean… But… but… No! You're not— The journal came from the Malfoys. Harry was supposed to destroy it."

"His father won't be very happy with him now, will he? Especially now that Harry has followed you here. That was a very dangerous and foolish thing that young Harry has done."

Draco had no idea what Tom/Voldemort was talking about, but it wasn't good. And he had used too much energy talking. If Harry did follow them, Harry would save the day and defeat Voldemort again. If Harry had not followed them, Draco was dead. There wasn't much he could do about the situation himself.

He heard hissing, and he could see that the big snake monster – Mr. Malfoy's mysterious basilisk – was moving. Harry had come for him! Harry would battle the snake, and then he would have a dramatic showdown with Voldemort, again, and then Draco would wake up in the hospital wing and all would be explained.

* * *

Draco did not wake up in the hospital wing. He was in his bedroom at Godric's Hollow. His school trunk was at the foot of his bed, and his beloved Nimbus 2001 was in the corner by his older, inferior brooms. The weather outside was a clear, bright, and perfect summer day.

He summoned a house elf, and he was surprised when his mother and father came into the room instead of Dotty or Dribbly. Both looked healthy and wonderfully safe and familiar. Draco loved them more than he had ever noticed that he loved them before.

Mrs. Narcissa Potter sat down in the chair by his bed and looked him over very carefully. "How are you feeling?" she asked.

"I'm fine," Draco said, and he was surprised that he was telling the truth. He hadn't felt so 'fine' in months. "How long have I been asleep?"

"A very long time," his mother said. "Twenty-five days. You nearly died."

Draco's dad stood behind his mother's chair. "You gave us all a scare, young man. No more confrontations with the Dark Lord until you've grown up."

"All right, Dad. What happened? Harry saved me, right?"

His mother said, "He nearly had you killed." She blamed Harry for everything, and Draco didn't like that.

"He told me not to use the evil journal. Harry didn't know about it." It would take more time for his mother to forgive Harry, but that could wait for later. Draco still needed to know what had happened to him. He asked his father, "What about Tom and the Chamber of Secrets?"

"I wish you weren't on first-name-basis with the Dark Lord," James said, but with a smile so that meant that everything had turned out well. Draco had been saved, and Harry must be alive, and Tom/Voldemort hadn't taken over the world.

His dad said, "You were possessed by Voldemort nearly every night for six months through the journal. Harry put a tracking charm on you the last night, and he followed you to the Chamber of Secrets. He killed the basilisk and destroyed the diary and that killed Voldemort. And then Professor Lockhart saved you."

"Professor Lockhart? How?" Draco knew that he had been Professor Lockhart's favorite student, but he had never suspected that the professor would ever do anything useful to help him, beyond the fashion and hair advice.

James said, "No one seems to remember, except Harry but he won't talk. The kid is in big trouble with his father."

"And he deserves to be," Mrs. Potter said. "Rest now, Draco. You'll have to talk with our lawyers tomorrow."

"Our lawyers?"

"For the lawsuit. The Malfoys nearly killed you. They will pay."


	4. Hogwarts Year 3, pt 1

Note: This chapter has a bit of Harry/Cho. Fear not, we'll get to Harry/Draco eventually.

Chapter 4 – Hogwarts Year 3, Part 1

If James Potter was ever going to stand up to his wife and tell her no, it would have been when Narcissa announced that she had blackmailed Lucius Malfoy into approving the transfer of her sister Bella from Azkaban into the protective custody of her loving family.

"Is that safe?" he asked. Bellatrix Black Lestrange had been crazy and dangerous before Azkaban. The dementers had not spent the last 12 years giving her therapy to prepare to become a useful member of society. She was supposed to lose her mind permanently and die.

"That doesn't matter," Narcissa said. "She is my sister. We will look after her here."

"How? Hire her a nurse and a few armed guards to keep her in a brand-new padded room?" James saw his wife reaching for her wand, and he decided that it was not wise to mock his sister-in-law's sanity. He tried a different tactic: "What about Draco?"

Narcissa let go of her wand and smiled. "Bella will adore Draco. He's a very charming boy. He deserves a chance to get to know his aunt."

Of course, James agreed to let Bellatrix come, because he agreed to everything his wife wanted. And he didn't want to find out what she would do to him if he refused to let Bellatrix in Godric's Hollow. One of the guest rooms was converted into a very fine padded room with sealed windows and no furniture with sharp edges.

Draco had always known that his Aunt Bellatrix was crazy, but he never knew just how insane she was until he met her himself. She came out from Azkaban wearing a straitjacket and cackling. Draco's father told him that he must never, ever let Aunt Bella near a wand because she was a dangerous psycho.

Aunt Bella, still restrained in the straitjacket and heavily sedated, was wheeled around Godric's Hallow by her very large nurse/guard. She said, "This is your home, Cissy? What happened to your husband's ancestral home? The Manor is famed for its beauty and luxury."

Draco's mother must have known what Aunt Bella was talking about. She said, "I married _James Potter_, Bella. You remember James. You tried to murder him before my wedding. James _Potter_. There is no _Potter_ Manor."

Aunt Bella wasn't listening. She was now looking at Draco. "Who are you, child?"

"I'm your nephew Draco."

That confused her. "But your hair!"

"It's a pixie curse."

"It should be blond, like your father's!"

Whoever Aunt Bella thought her sister was married to, it wasn't James Potter. She decided to treat him like an unusually tall house elf. She called him 'Jotty'. Draco was an unfortunate genetic freak, but was otherwise accepted as being a relative because of his name. There were several Dracos in the Black family tree.

"Can I send an owl to Malfoy Manor, or are you still negotiating the out-of-court settlement?" Draco asked his mother the next day.

Aunt Bella hissed. "Malfoy Manor? Will we leave this tiny hovel and go to a proper wizarding home?"

"No, Bellatrix," Draco's father said. "This is our home."

"Yes, Jotty, you are bound to serve the family when we are here, but we need more space than this. Has a Black ever lived in such a small house? Our parents would never allow us to marry paupers." Draco's crazy aunt stuck to her story well. She thought that Narcissa was married to a rich blond man. She couldn't mean Mr. Malfoy because he was Harry's dad and, anyway, Draco's mother hated him. There must be other rich blond men.

"Can I invite Harry to visit?" Draco asked his father.

"No," Mrs. Potter said. "The boy is dangerous. Bella, you may be interested in this. Lucius Malfoy married a _mudblood_, and his son has defeated the Dark Lord _three_ times. Lord Voldemort is dead."

Aunt Bella gasped and sputtered and drooled a bit. Her medication dosage had been increased that morning after an unexpected visit from her cousin Sirius sent her into a violent fit of hatred and loathing. Luckily they hadn't let her out of her straitjacket yet.

She struggled with her restraints and said, "My Lord? Dead? He will return! He said he would return. Defeated? Never! Deceived by his most trusted lieutenant? Impossible!"

James said, "It happened. Lucius and Harry Malfoy have done more damage to Voldemort than Dumbledore ever did."

Aunt Bella stopped struggling. She was thinking about this new revelation. She did not sound insane at all when she finally declared, "Then they must die. Jotty, more tea."

"Yes, mistress."

Draco's owl to Harry was returned unopened, along with a note saying that Harry was unable to receive any personal correspondence during the summer as part of his punishment for disobeying his father. How was Harry going to know that Draco was all right after the Chamber of Secrets if he couldn't receive mail? Out of desperation, Draco wrote to Hermione Granger. She would know how to get messages to their captive friend.

"Address your letter to 'Horrible Herbology Tutor Kenneth, Malfoy Manor.' He feels sorry for Harry and gives him my letters. Harry can't send letters out, not even through Kenneth."

Harry and Mrs. Malfoy did not come to Draco's thirteenth birthday party. They sent a present, though. The note, in Harry's handwriting, said, "Try not to be killed by this present." It was a Firebolt broom! Draco told everyone that Harry was favorite person in the world and his very best friend. It must have taken Harry a lot of effort to get permission to send a present at all, and then he had to get the money to get such an incredibly awesome thing. Or maybe Lucius Malfoy was bribing his family into not going through with the lawsuit against Harry for nearly killing Draco with Tom Riddle's diary. Whatever. Draco loved his new broom.

His father's old friend Peter Pettigrew came to Draco's party. Peter traveled around Eastern Europe collecting antique magical artifacts for private collectors. He had spent the last year in Albania.

"What's so special about Albania?" Draco asked. "Lucius Malfoy is always there, too."

Hearing the name 'Lucius Malfoy' made Peter look evil and murderous for a moment. Draco did not ask any more questions related to the Malfoys. Maybe everyone went to Albania for the beaches.

Peter actually voluntarily talked to Aunt Bella and listened to her rants about how the Dark Lord would return with her help and how the Malfoys must be destroyed. After the party Bella seemed disturbingly happy and told everyone how much she liked "that Pettigrew creep". James promised to invite him over soon. Draco practiced with his new broom for hours every day. His father was very jealous of him.

* * *

Harry Malfoy did not sit with Draco and the Weasleys on the train to Hogwarts. That was unacceptable. After spending a half hour telling the Weasleys about how unacceptable that was, Draco went off to find wherever Harry was hiding. 

He wasn't with the other Gryffindor third-years, or the Gryffindor fourth-years or fifth-years. Who else did Harry ever talk to? Then Draco saw Hermione Granger going into a compartment on the far end of the third car, and Draco knew he had found Harry's hiding place: Ravenclaw territory.

Draco opened the compartment and did not see what he had expected to see. It had been enlarged, and someone good at transfiguration had changed the normal train interior into a comfortable sitting room with armchairs and sofas. It was an impressive, little feat of magic. There were eight older Ravenclaws, and then Harry and Hermione. Hermione was sitting and talking to the group of Ravenclaws as if they were all great friends. Maybe they were. Why should Draco care about Hermione Granger's friends? He had assumed that she was too annoying to have friends other than Harry and Ron Weasley.

Harry and the Ravenclaw seeker, Chang, were sitting apart from the others. What could they possibly have to say to each other? Harry wasn't even on the Gryffindor Quidditch team anymore. Harry was sitting in a leather armchair with the back to the compartment door, but Chang saw Draco come in. She did not look happy to see him.

Draco was, by nature, a very friendly boy, and he was usually nice to students from other houses, but he was very, very competitive about Quidditch. Of course, Draco was a much better seeker than Chang was, but she was still very good. That made her an enemy.

"Chang, how was your summer?" Draco said in his most insincere tone of voice. "I hope you've been practicing. It gets so boring playing these school matches with no _decent_ competition."

Harry turned around and said, "Draco! Cho and I were just talking about you." But it wasn't Harry's voice. It was too low and grown-up. He wore his white-blond hair longer, now at chin-length, also a more grown-up style. He was sitting down, but Draco could tell that he had grown at least another 3 or 4 inches. Maybe he even shaved now. At thirteen! Did he really have to do everything first? Harry still had his light scattering of freckles across his nose, like his mother, and Lily Malfoy's expressive green eyes, but he looked more like his father than he used to. Maybe it was because he was among strangers – Why did Harry use Chang's first name? – and had to be on his best behavior like a good Malfoy. He would be more like Harry and less like the Malfoy heir when they were alone.

Harry conjured a chair next to him, and Draco sat down. He didn't want to. He wanted to take Harry back to his compartment and finally hear what really happened in the Chamber of Secrets. But now that he was there, he wasn't going to leave Harry with Chang.

"I got your letters," Harry said. "Thanks for writing."

Draco wanted to ask about Harry's punishments from his father, but he wasn't going to talk about personal things in front of Chang. She wasn't Harry's friend, and Draco wasn't going to let her forget that. Draco turned to Chang and said, "Harry sent me the best birthday present ever. A Firebolt."

"What?" Chang looked like she felt all the shock and envy that Draco had hoped. Every Quidditch player in the world wanted a Firebolt, and Draco had one. But Chang quickly recovered, maybe remembering Harry's hatred of Quidditch, and smiled like the news wasn't the doom of all of Ravenclaw's hopes of winning the Quidditch Cup. "Quidditch matches against Gryffindor will never be fair If you keep on giving Potter the best brooms, Harry."

Harry smiled in an especially Lucius-Malfoy-superior-to-everyone-else manner. He didn't used to smile like that. He said, "Malfoys always give outrageously expensive presents. It's part of the family code of honor. I never heard of the broom, but Father suggested it."

"Your father is awesome," Draco declared for the first, and probably the last, time in his life.

Harry laughed in a much more natural way. "I'll tell him you said that."

Hermione Granger and another Ravenclaw girl came over to them. Granger looked as happy to see Draco as Chang was. "Hello, Potter," she said coldly. "How did you find us?"

"I'm more clever than you think I am," he said. Before she could say anything about just how clever she thought he was, he added, "Ron was wondering where you were." That shut her up. She blushed, like she always did whenever someone talked about Ron, and stammered something about how she was going to look for him later.

"We haven't been introduced," the other Ravenclaw girl said. "I'm Marietta Edgecombe. You're Draco Potter. Everyone was really worried about you last year, when you nearly died." She didn't sound especially upset over the recollection of Draco's near-death experience, but she was one of Chang's friends, so she probably also resented Draco's superior Quidditch skills.

"It's a good thing that Professor Lockhart was there to save you," Hermione said sarcastically, showing that even that heroic deed did not prove to her Professor Lockhart's superiority over the rest of the Hogwarts staff.

"No one has told me what he did. Do you know, Granger?" Draco asked.

"Harry won't say," she said. "How did you take your exams over the summer? Did you come back to Hogwarts or did they give you the Ministry's equivalence exams?"

"Exams?" Draco repeated. "I didn't—No one told me—I saw Professor Dumbledore and he didn't say I had to take them."

"You didn't take any exams last year?" Marietta looked deeply shocked and outraged by that admission, and no doubt would never forgive Draco for that crime. "Then did you even _pass_ your second year?"

"Of course I passed. I got my Hogwarts letter with books for third years. Do you want to see it as proof?"

Draco had to admit that Marietta Edgecombe and Hermione Granger were very clever witches. By the time he realized that they were arguing with him and pestering him as a ploy to distract him from Harry and Chang, the train was nearly at Hogwarts and he had to return to his compartment to get changed.

Why should Cho Chang be so determined to be Harry's friend now? Draco didn't understand, but he didn't like it at all.

* * *

Draco sat next to Harry at the Welcoming Feast. Unfortunate, so did Hermione Granger, and she wanted to talk about the extra electives that the third-year students were now forced to take. Draco was taking Divination because Uncle Sirius said it was super-easy. All you had to do was lie and sleep. His other elective was Care of Magical Creatures because it was held outdoors. 

Hermione wanted to take every elective and was angry that she had to choose only up to three. She declared that she couldn't choose three out of Care of Magical Creatures, Divination, Ancient Runes, Arthmancy, and Muggle Studies.

"Why do you need Muggle Studies? You're a muggle all summer," Draco said. Calling a wizard a muggle is never wise. Hermione Granger fiddled with her wand and then Draco's chicken tasted like toothpaste. Fine. He had had enough to eat, anyway.

Harry was annoyed that he had been sent the book list for Muggle Studies during the summer. He planned on taking Ancient Runes, Arthmancy, and Care of Magical Creatures. He wasn't going to drop one of his electives because Professor McGonagall or the Headmaster thought the son of Lucius Malfoy ought to learn more about muggles.

"Father says it's because the Headmaster is prejudiced against the Malfoy family," Harry said. "Everyone seems to forget that my mother is muggle-born. I already know about muggles. My mother takes me into Muggle England every year. I don't like it there. It's not my world. It's irrelevant to me." He had spoken very quietly, so only Draco and Hermione could hear his anti-muggle rant, but the other Gryffindors could see that he was deadly serious and angry about what he was saying. Harry was terrifying when he was angry.

Hermione had to defend her muggle world, but she spoke very cautiously, waiting for Harry or his accidental magic to lash out. "It's part of your family heritage," she said. "It could be interesting. I don't understand how their science works – electricity and television and automobile engines."

"You haven't met the Dursleys," Harry said. He rarely spoke about his muggle relatives to Draco, but he clearly despised them. Harry continued, "They don't inspired me to want to know all about how they get around the world without magic. I don't want to know anything about their lives. _Ever_."

After the Welcoming feast was over, Harry and Hermione had an appointment with Professor Dumbledore to discuss their schedules. Draco hoped that Harry wouldn't be expelled for anti-muggle prejudice, and he hoped that Hermione Granger would be annoying enough to be banished from the wizarding world for the rest of her miserable life.

Neither happened. Harry and Hermione returned to the Common Room looking very, very happy.

"What happened? No more Muggle Studies?" Draco asked.

"We get to take Advanced Magical Theory!" Hermione said.

_We_? As in … _everyone_? Draco was going to be sick.

"Not you, Draco, don't worry," Harry said. "It's only offered to students beginning in their fourth year, and it's so difficult that only Ravenclaws ever take it. And us!"

"We also get to take Ancient Runes, Arithmancy, and Care of Magical Creatures," Hermione said. "Then I'm taking Divination and Harry has Muggle Studies."

"No way," Draco said. "That's too many classes. How can you do it?"

"Magic," Harry said, and Hermione and he laughed. They were both mad.

Or maybe Draco was going mad, because after that, Hermione and Harry seemed to be everywhere he looked. He'd leave them in the Great Hall, and then he'd turn a corner and see them in the library. They would seem to appear out of thin air, sneaking around corners, using mysterious shortcuts. They were doing something weird, and Draco would eventually figure it out. Or maybe if he whined enough, Harry would tell him what was gong on.

Harry was still banned from herbology. Professor Snape said he would always be able to find time for his favorite student, and his private herbology/magical control lessons continued. Apparently Harry had had a major breakthrough concerning his magical control over the summer, but he could not discuss it with Draco or Hermione. That probably meant it involved illegal Dark magic, possibly involving blood sacrifices, but Hermione wouldn't listen to Draco's theories.

In the first week of classes, Harry Malfoy discovered a new class that he could not take: Care of Magical Creatures. The cute, harmless, Light creatures were too scared of him to let him come close to them. He followed all of Hagrid's instructions and everything in the textbook, but the puffskeins would shriek and cry if he got within ten feet of them. Puffskeins had never been observed to shriek before. Hagrid was thrilled. Then the evil creatures like Hagrid's thestrals – which Draco couldn't see, but Harry said were disgusting – adored him and cooed when he came close and wanted him to pet them.

"What am I supposed to do?" Harry asked Hagrid.

"Scratch his ear," Hagrid said. Lunatic.

Draco suggested that Harry assemble all the Dark creatures he could find and lead the Army of the Night into Hogsmeade to pillage. Hagrid thought that Harry's affinity to Dark creatures and repulsion of Light creatures was fascinating. Then the oaf's enormous hippogriff Buckbeak attacked Harry, in spite of his best efforts to follow all the proper conduct around the beasts, and severely damaged his arm. Lucius Malfoy sent his lawyer to Hogwarts as soon as he heard what had happened.

"Other parents would send sweets," Draco said. Or they would visit themselves, but he wouldn't dare say that.

Harry said, "What other big Light creatures are there? We need to make certain Hagrid doesn't get any more. I'm sure he'd like evil, dark, fire-breathing dragons with big teeth."

"Or maybe you should stop taking the class," Draco suggested. "You killed herbology, and you stopped. Care of Magical Creatures wants to kill you, so …"

"Harry has a special connection with Dark creatures," Hermione Granger said, sounding even more like an annoying, self-righteous know-it-all than usual. "He has to learn more about it. And he should know how to handle being attacked by unicorns."

"Unicorns? Those horns look painful," Harry said. He was probably in favor of Draco's plan to stop taking the class. But Harry didn't want to tell his father about his persistent problems with Light creatures, so Harry stayed in the class and always stood very far in the back.

* * *

Something strange was going on with the new Defense Against the Dark Arts professor, Professor Remus Lupin. He ignored Harry Malfoy. That was impossible to do. Harry had been a celebrity since he was a baby, and now he was dangerously powerful and very, very intelligent. His situation demanded special treatment. Professor Lupin would stay on the other side of the classroom from wherever Harry sat. Harry changed seats just to see what would happen. Lupin wouldn't look at him. He never called on him in class. It was like Harry wasn't there at all. 

"Add Professor Lupin to the list of people who are scared of Harry," Draco said.

"It's more than that," Harry said. "He finds me utterly repulsive. Maybe he has some Light creature inheritance. The dryads wouldn't look at me, either."

"Why don't we ask him?" Hermione asked.

"I'm not allowed to see Professor Lupin outside of class," Draco said. "My mother said so. She doesn't like him."

"I think he'd run away if he saw me coming," Harry said. "I'll ask Professor Snape."

Professor Snape said that Professor Lupin was a very dangerous man who should not be allowed to be around children, but the Headmaster was deluded about him, like how he had been deluded about the other incompetent DADA professors.

At the end of the next DADA class, Harry was tired and nervous about an exam in Advanced Magical Theory and whispered to Hermione that he hoped Lupin wouldn't assign them any homework. Lupin always did. He had a parchment in his hands and was about to write instructions on the chalkboard, but he heard Harry's comment and looked at him, for the first time.

"There will be no homework today," he said. He looked especially miserable when he said that, like it was against his will.

"Harry, you have to talk to Professor Dumbledore," Hermione said. "You just commanded Professor Lupin not to give us any homework. This isn't good."

Lupin had a certain weakness that Harry could accidentally take advantage of. Professor Dumbledore wouldn't explain, of course. It was sufficient that Harry could no longer take DADA with Lupin. He would have private tutorials, with tutors selected by Dumbledore. Rufus Scrimgeour, Kingsley Shacklebolt, Proudfoot, Dawlish…

Harry was furious. "They're _aurors_ loyal to Dumbledore," he explained to Draco and Hermione. "They aren't even certified teachers. They know nothing about what is going to be on the O.W.L.s or the N.E.W.Ts. The Headmaster is trying to sabotage my education and place me under Ministry surveillance even though I haven't done anything wrong. I hate aurors, I hate the Ministry, and I _really_ hate the Headmaster. Professor Lupin has a problem, not me. I'm going to tell my father."

* * *

It was impossible to find Harry in the evenings. Whenever Draco asked people where he was, everyone gave different answers. He was in the library, he was working in the astronomy tower, he was in the dorms, he was in the Ravenclaw common room – He was everywhere! Instead of chasing Harry all over Hogwarts, Draco waited until everyone was asleep and then woke Harry up. 

Harry grumbled something about how it was after midnight and that he really, really needed to sleep, but Draco explained several times that he was not going to let Harry sleep until he answered all of Draco's questions. Harry didn't want to get out of bed, so Draco conducted his interrogation while sitting on Harry's bed, after Harry had put a powerful silencing spell around them.

Draco's first question was, "What happened in the Chamber of Secrets?"

"I destroyed Tom Riddle's diary and the basilisk and took you to the Hospital wing," Harry said, which was what he had told everyone else.

"What did Professor Lockhart do?"

Harry hesitated, because this part of the story wasn't common knowledge, but he told Draco the truth. "I couldn't get you up to the entrance of the Chamber, so I blasted through a wall in the dungeons. We ended up in Lockhart's bathroom, while he was taking a bath. He tried to obliviate me and told everyone that he broke the wall and saved you."

"Why didn't you tell everyone that?"

"And announce to the world that I can't be obliviated? Professor Dumbledore and any other decent Legilimens must have gotten the truth from Lockhart, but no one has said anything. Father had Lockhart dismissed. He could have done permanent damage when he attacked my mind."

Draco suspected that the Malfoys would retaliate by doing much more than having Professor Lockhart fired, but he didn't want to know more about how evil Lucius Malfoy was. But there was another topic related to him that Draco was still curious about: "What about your punishment last summer?"

Harry groaned. "As if herbology with Kenneth wasn't bad enough! Father decided that I needed to be reminded what it means to be a Malfoy."

With more groans and grimaces, Harry spent the next hour explaining just what that meant. His mother had given Harry a modern, balanced childhood with both muggle and wizarding experiences. Harry's father decided that Harry now needed proper, pureblood tutors and ancient, bigoted relatives come and teach him all about the old wizarding traditions and rituals. There were dancing lessons and etiquette lessons and history lessons and riding lessons on dragons, pegasuses, and dolphins. Extra emphasis was placed on courtship rituals, of course.

"Why?" Draco asked. "Is your father arranging you to marry an inbred French witch you've never met?"

"Did your parents teach you anything about the old wizarding ways?"

"No, they're progressive blood traitors. So what about your marriage?"

"Courtship begins at fourteen. Both of you don't even need to be fourteen. Just one."

It took Draco several days to realize the significance of Harry's explanation on proper wizarding courtship rituals.

Cho Chang was in Advanced Magical Theory. She was Harry's partner in all their projects. Hermione Granger was Marietta Edgecombe's partner, and Hermione and Marietta would work at a different table in the library from Cho and Harry and try to keep other people from interrupting Harry and Chang. Draco now found Chang and Harry in the library after nearly every Quidditch practice. He didn't understand how Harry could study so much for that class and not for the others, but somehow Harry got all his assignments done on time.

Chang was fourteen. Chang was always around Harry, and she was always trying to get Draco to go away and leave them alone. Chang must be attempting to manipulate Harry into courting her! She didn't have a chance. Harry was a Malfoy and the Boy Who Lived, and he was rich and good-looking and nice and freakishly powerful. He could do much, much better than Cho Chang.

Apparently Draco underestimated Chang's powers of seduction. Before their very first Hogsmeade weekend, Harry sat down with Draco in the Gryffindor Common Room and said, "I'm telling you first because I don't want you to be horrible about this. I'm going to ask Cho to go to Hogsmeade with me."

"What? Her?" Draco had thought that Harry would be able to resist Chang's feminine wiles for longer.

Harry said, "I know you don't like her because of Quidditch, but if you could forget Quidditch and talk to her, I think you'd like her. She has a wicked sense of humor, a lot like yours, actually."

"She doesn't like me, either," Draco said.

"I'll ask her to be civil to you, if you agree to be civil to her," Harry said.

'Civil' could mean many different things. Draco agreed, but he knew that the courtship idea was a big mistake and, as Harry's best friend, it was his duty to do what he could to bring Harry back to his senses.

Hermione was delighted, and she smugly told Draco that she had been plotting with Marietta to fix up Harry and Cho since the summer. Harry laughed when Draco told him about the evil plot.

Cho Chang happily appeared on the front page of the next day's 'Daily Prophet': The Boy Who Lived's Girlfriend! The relationship wouldn't last.

* * *

_Dear Nephew,_

_Your mother no longer Understands what is due to her in the World. She denies her True Husband and refuses to Grasp her rightful Heritage as the wife of a Once Greatly Esteemed Man. As the Mistress of Malfoy Manor, your mother should have Kept her True Husband on his Path to Greatness under the Wise and Esteemed Leadership of OUR GOOD AND GREAT DARK LORD. WHERE ARE YOU, MY LORD, AND WHY DID YOU NEVER COME TO SAVE ME, YOUR MOST TRUSTED SERVANT? WHY ARE YOU NOT HERE?_

_I have not forgotten the Vows I took. I remember the Days of BLOOD They will come again, for I am HERE FOR THE DARK LORD AND WILL ALWAYS SERVE HIM IN MY HEART AND IN MY ACTIONS. My Dark Lord, what Bliss, what Ecstasy, What Darkness Will Be Ours, Blood, Bones, HATE, blooooood, blood, blood, bloooood, DEATH, the Malfoys SHALL FALL. Father and Son will DIE. For the HONOR of the Black family and for the Greatness of the Dark Lord and his Loyal Death Eaters._

_You will be My Heir. You shall follow where I lead. Together we will PURGE THE WORLD OF FILTH. We will Prepare for the Return of my Master – OUR Master. Dear nephew, dear son, we will BREAK THESE BONDS and LEAVE THE ELF JOTTY and REJOICE AND PREVAIL OVER OUR ENEMIES._

_Love, Aunt Bella_

Draco handed Harry his aunt's latest letter and continued eating his breakfast. "Mum says Aunt Bella is getting better," he said. "She's still insane, but, look, she's using complete sentences now when calling for your death."

Harry quickly read over the rant and folded it and put it into his robe pocket to send to his father. Lucius Malfoy had been the one responsible for Bellatrix Lestrange's release from Azkaban, so he would not demand that she be punished and imprisoned again for her constant threats against him. He still requested that Draco keep them informed about her mental condition.

Hermione said, "I don't know why your parents let Mrs. Lestrange write those letters. It's condoning her pro-Death Eater views."

"We are not judging Aunt Bella, we are helping her heal," Draco said. "Her spelling has really improved, except for that 'blood' part."

"She also thinks that your father is a house elf and that my father is your mother's true husband," Harry said.

"I wish Mum and Dad would let Aunt Bella use a pensieve," Draco said wistfully. "Wouldn't it be awesome to see what it's like inside a truly insane person's head? I wonder what are those days of blood that she remembers. I'll ask in my next letter to her."

"Don't encourage her, Potter," Hermione snapped.

"She is making a very slow recovery. Every step is important. It is important that she feels like a loved and valued member of the family. You should hear her talk about torture. She used to have a real gift for it." Draco then started to describe some of her favorite techniques until Harry cast a silencing spell on him for the rest of breakfast.

* * *

Divination was easier than Uncle Sirius said it was. Draco didn't even have to make things up. He just had to look into his crystal ball and write down what he saw. Best of all, Hermione Granger couldn't do it and it drove her mad. He made certain that they were always partners in that class. 

"Divination is all a fraud. It doesn't work," she declared. "Professor Trelawney is a fake."

"Then I won't tell you what's going to be on the potions pop quiz this afternoon," Draco said. In his crystal ball, he could read the questions while Professor Snape wrote them out. Hermione leaned forward to look in the ball and saw nothing.

"You're such a liar, Potter," she said.

"First question is on the ingredients of a Shrinking Potion," Draco said.

She did her very best to disbelieve him, but he saw her write that down on the margin of her Divination notes. He couldn't wait until potions class, when she would see that he was right.

But then the vision in his crystal ball changed. Instead of Professor Snape's study, it showed Hogsmeade. By the pattern of the swirling colors around the edges of the vision, Draco recognized the signs of a true prophetic vision. Professor Trelawney would probably give him extra credit points for this. Granger was going to murder him out of envy.

The scene had lots of students in it in their Hogwarts cloaks. The vision was for the up-coming Hogsmeade weekend. Draco looked for himself, but he didn't seem to be there. What was the point of the vision of a bunch of fifth-year Hufflepuffs going to Honeyduke's?

Harry and Chang came walking slowly down the middle of the road, paying more attention to what they were saying to each other than to the students and shops around them. Draco didn't want visions about Ms. Boy-Who-Lived's-Girlfriend. Well, maybe they would be OK if they involved her bloody death.

Then there was a big explosion and the scene disappeared in flames. Draco didn't need to consult his textbook for help in interpreting that vision. Harry would be attacked in Hogsmeade if he went there with Cho Chang. As Harry's best friend, Draco had to warn him.

Hermione spent lunchtime revising for the quiz in potions that she claimed she did not believe in. Harry did not believe Draco's prophetic vision.

"Father says that Divination can be misinterpreted by amateurs. Malfoys pay for our prophesies," Harry said.

"I'm gifted with the Inner Eye. Ask Professor Trelawney. It was a true vision."

"Hermione didn't see anything."

"That's because she's practically a muggle and doesn't have the ability that is developed in the old wizarding families like mine." The argument was suspended because Hermione set Draco Potter's trousers on fire for insulting her. Then she went back to studying.

Later that evening, Hermione claimed that Draco's pop-quiz vision with the first question on Shrinking Potions was a lucky guess. Harry still wouldn't listen to Draco about the Hogsmeade attack. Even if no one believed him, Draco would be ready for the attack.


	5. Hogwarts Year 3, pt 2

Chapter 5 – Hogwarts Year 3, part 2

On the Saturday morning of the Hogsmeade attack, Harry Malfoy was still not listening to Draco's warnings. Draco was the best Divination in the third year, and he knew that he had had a true prophetic vision showing that Harry and Cho Chang would be attacked if they went to Hogsmeade together. Obviously that meant that Harry should get a new girlfriend and never speak to Chang again, for his own safety. Draco's Inner Eye said so.

"Sorry, Draco, but I'm not falling for your Divination jokes," Harry said. "You can tell me that I'm going to be eaten by the Giant Squid and then marry Hagrid. I'm still going to Hogsmeade with Cho today."

"Divination isn't a joke," Draco protested. "I mean, it isn't now. The vision about you being attacked was real. I'm telling the truth this time."

Harry clearly didn't believe him. Perhaps it had not been a good idea to offer to read palms last night in the Gryffindor Common Room. Draco told Lavender Brown she had no love line and would die miserable and alone, and Lee Jordan that based on his life line he died two months ago, and Fred Weasley that he was going to have a long and happy life married to Professor Snape. Best of all, Draco charged for his services and now he could buy extra sweets in Hogsmeade.

Draco was good at making Harry and everyone else laugh, but he now found that he was useless at getting people to take him seriously. He continued to warn and whine at his friend while Harry got ready for his big date.

"What was I wearing in your so-called vision?" Harry asked.

"Your black wool cloak buttoned up, black trousers, and your Gryffindor scarf," Draco said, pointing at each item that Harry was now wearing.

Harry took off the scarf and took out a gray cashmere scarf from his wardrobe and a dark fur hat. The hat looked Eastern European, maybe a souvenir from all of Mr. Malfoy's trips to Albania. It was probably the height of fashion in St. Petersburg and more valuable than Draco's Firebolt, but it was also kind of funny-looking.

Harry put on the scarf and hat. Somehow he did not look ridiculous wearing something dead and furry on his head, but it was still odd. He said, "I wasn't wearing a hat in your vision, was I?"

"Umm, no, because I never knew anyone would voluntarily wear something like that."

Harry nodded. "Good. Now you know your vision can't come true. Happy?"

"What do you call that thing? Is it Albanian?"

"I call it a hat. I'm supposed to meet Cho soon. I'll talk to you _tonight._" In other words, Draco was not invited to tag along during the Hogsmeade trip, not even to remind Harry to be careful. Fine. Draco knew when his company was not wanted. At least Harry was taking his warning seriously enough to wear a weird-looking Albanian furry hat.

* * *

There was no attack on Hogsmeade on Saturday. Harry had worn his furry hat, Cho had flirted with Harry shamelessly, and Draco had spent most of the day following Professor Lupin around, ready to bring the teacher along to save the day when Harry and Cho were attacked. Lupin had tried to talk to Draco about how it felt to be left out when your best friend's girlfriend hates you. Draco was too concerned about the attack to explain to Lupin that he could not feel left out because Harry liked him much more than he could ever like Cho Chang. 

So what went wrong with Draco's vision? Did Harry really change his future by wearing a furry hat? Or did Draco misinterpret the vision?

Hermione Granger did not say anything, but he could tell that she was silently gloating. After two months of glorious Divination success, Draco had gotten something wrong. He made himself look like a fool in front of Harry Malfoy and Cho Chang.

Their assignment in their Divination class the following Monday was to call up a vision of a close friend or family member. Granger declared that her mother and her father were somewhere very foggy. In other words, she didn't see a thing in her crystal ball. Draco would normally laugh at her failure, but he was having problems himself.

First he saw Harry Malfoy in his Muggle Studies class, trying to ride a bicycle. Draco could see that Harry was cheating and using magic to keep himself up and move forward without using the pedals. But then the vision changed to Harry sitting next to Hermione in what looked like Arthmancy. And then the vision shifted to Harry sitting alone in the library.

"That's it. I've lost my gift," Draco said in despair.

Hermione was so surprised by Draco's admission that she was actually sympathetic. "Maybe whoever you're looking at is in the fog, too."

"No, Harry happens to be in Muggle Studies, Arthmancy, and studying in the library," Draco said. "You're right. Divination is rubbish. I'm no good at anything except Quidditch."

"You see that Harry's in three places at once?" Hermione asked. She leaned forward and looked into the crystal ball and saw nothing.

"He's probably in the fog, like your parents," Draco said. "If it makes it better, you're also in Arthmancy now. It's another fake vision, like the Hogsmeade attack."

Hermione began to say something, then stopped, then started again. "Maybe… maybe your Hogsmeade vision wasn't false. It could be for another trip."

"Really?" Draco hadn't thought of that. If Harry did not end his doomed relationship with Cho Chang, there could be other Hogsmeade trips, without the hat. Then his vision could come true, and Divination would not be rubbish.

But his crystal ball was still shifting among three different Harry Malfoys. Draco knew he was following the instructions properly. Hermione was still looking into Draco's crystal ball, like she expected to see the three Harrys, too. Draco asked, "Do you have any bright ideas why can't I see Harry?"

"Harry is a special case," Hermione mumbled, obviously lying about something but Draco didn't have time to worry about that. Professor Trelawney would be very disappointed if her best student failed what should be a simple assignment. He could try to see someone else, something less special.

Aunt Bella. He channeled her presence and the vision in the crystal ball cleared to show her in the garden at Godric's Hollow. She wasn't wearing her straitjacket, but she was still sedated and guarded. She was talking to Peter Pettigrew. Draco had heard that Mr. Pettigrew visited his aunt, but he was still surprised to see him there. Crazy Aunt Bella smiled at him and seemed to be having a sane conversation with him. Weird.

"Aunt Bella must be improving," Draco told Hermione, "or else Mr. Pettigrew must have really interesting ideas on how to murder Mr. Malfoy. I wish we could get the sound on crystal balls."

Draco stayed after class to consult with Professor Trelawney about his Hogsmeade vision and its shocking failure. She clucked sympathetically and said, "You are still too impatient, Mr. Potter. All true visions come true."

"How do we know when the time is right? Can you date visions? Or maybe it wasn't a true vision."

Professor Trelawney shook her head. "It was a true vision. I have had my own suspicions about your friend. The vibrations from the stars all say that Harry Malfoy's life is in _mortal danger_." Her buggy eyes were extra-wide as she said that, and if she wasn't saying such a horrible thing, Draco would think she was enjoying the moment.

"Then we have to tell the Headmaster!" Draco said. "Harry doesn't believe in my vision, but if you say the star vibrations say that Harry's in danger, he'll have to listen to you. You're a teacher!" He grabbed his books and stood up to go straight to Professor Dumbledore's office.

Professor Trelawney did not get up from her incredibly cushiony chair. She sighed very loudly and dramatically and said, "Not everyone chooses to listen to the stars."

"Not even the headmaster? But-but you're a teacher!"

"I am surrounded by enemies, young Draco, enemies who lie about me behind my back and who hold much influence over the Headmaster. Once upon a time, fourteen years ago, Albus Dumbledore offered me the protection of Hogwarts because of _my_ prophecies. And now they let me have a classroom without a proper entrance. A damn trap door! And all those steps! They don't want me to come down to the Great Hall, do they? Well, I won't give them that satisfaction…"

Professor Trelawney rambled on about the machinations of her enemies until Draco was late for his next class, Care of Magical Creatures, during which Harry Malfoy was nearly abducted by a pair of curious centaurs venturing out of the Forbidden Forest.

"They meant ya no harm, Malfoy," Hagrid said after Harry had freed himself and fell hard to the ground. "They were playing. There's no need to tell yer father. It won't happen again, I promise. No harm done."

Draco helped Harry to his feet and brushed the dirt off his uniform. Harry was uninjured, but he was furious. It was a good thing that the centaurs had fled back into the forest before anyone could identify who they were. Otherwise, they would end up sharing the same fate as Buckbeak the doomed hippogriff. The Malfoy lawyers were out for blood, and they were going to get it.

"You survived, Harry. Centaurs are stupid beasts," Draco said. "Just like the puffskeins."

He reached out to straighten Harry's tie, but Harry jerked away and straightened the tie himself, standing with extra good posture and the Malfoy glare. "I thought you'd like centaurs" Harry said coldly. "They are known for bullshit visions, too." He was young Lucius Malfoy at that moment, and Draco did not like it at all.

"Fine, go have them killed," Draco said. "Then drop this class before you get seriously hurt."

Harry turned and marched back to the castle, even though he was uninjured and the class was not even half-way through. He was going to write a letter to his father and tell him to have the Hogwarts centaur population exterminated to defend the Malfoy family pride. Draco's first thought was to follow Harry, but he saw how lost and sad Hagrid looked, and how confused and scared his classmates were. He'd cover for Harry.

"He's going to see Madame Pomfrey," Draco lied.

Harry and Draco tried very hard to quarrel and hold grudges, but by breakfast the next morning Harry had apologized for lashing out at Draco when he was still feeling like he was going to vomit from being carried upside by the centaurs, and Draco had apologized for his insensitivity to Harry's physical and emotional trauma. Hermione and Cho were both very disappointed at how quickly they had settled their differences.

Harry still wouldn't believe in Draco's vision, not even with Professor Trelawney's report of the star vibrations. Hermione's marks in Divination improved dramatically now that she made up lots of visions predicting Harry Malfoy's death. Professor Trelawney loved them. Draco tried to have the Hogsmeade attack vision again, but the only true visions he had were about a fat, ugly rat running around the Hogwarts corridors.

* * *

One evening in November, Draco went to the library after Quidditch practice and did not find Harry and Cho studying together. Hermione was studying with Marietta Edgecombe. 

"Cho and Harry went somewhere more _private_," Marietta said with a wicked grin that Draco did not like at all. He went straight to the Weasley twins with his problem.

"You have the amazing and unnatural ability to find people in the castle," Draco said, and Fred and George nodded to acknowledge their talents. "Tell me where Harry is."

Fred looked at George and George raised his eyebrows and grimaced and Fred twitched his nose and George shook his head and Fred nodded twice and winked and George rolled his eyes and nodded.

George said, "Harry Malfoy is a special case."

"Can you find him?"

George blinked twice and wiggled his ears. Fred nodded and said, "Are you old enough to keep a secret, Draco? Three very big secrets?"

"Yes, tell me where he is."

Secret #1 was the legendary Marauder's Map, proudly created by Draco's father, Uncle Sirius, and their friends and passed on down the generations of Gryffindor trouble makers. It was cool to be able to see the location of everyone in the school, but there were lots of names and most of the dots were clustered in the same area, so it was not easy to find a single person.

Fred and George were more experienced at using the map, and they pointed out that Harry Malfoy was in the Ravenclaw group study room with Chang. At least that was better than Cho Chang's bedroom.

Secret #2: Harry Malfoy was also in the third year Gryffindor boy's dormitory, apparently sleeping.

"I don't get it," Draco said, looking at the two dots. "Is there someone else named Harry Malfoy in the school? Is the map broken?"

Fred and George had another intensive discussion in twitches and subtle facial expressions before telling him the answer: "Time-turner."

"What? Harry has a time-turner and he didn't tell me? He has been using it all year, hasn't he? What about last year? Has he been using it behind my back for his entire life? How old do you think he really is, if he's living double-time? Are there more Harrys? He never told me!"

Then he saw secret #3: Hermione Granger was in three places at the same time. She had a time-turner, too. They were among the coolest and most rare magical artifacts in existence, and his best friend and someone he sometimes almost considered a friend each had one.

Draco took the map from the twins, after half-asking permission, and went straight to the third year dormitory to tell Harry Malfoy exactly what he thought about liars. The lights were off, and the room didn't look like anyone was there. Draco turned on the light and went over to Harry's bed. The bed curtains were drawn. Draco opened them, and saw that the map was right, Harry was asleep. He was still wearing his school uniform, but he was fast asleep, dead to the world. He must be exhausted trying to be two or three places at once.

But Draco couldn't leave him in peace. He ruffled Harry's perfect white-blonde hair so it would look almost as messy as Draco's hair always was, and he leaned over and whispered in Harry's ear, "You are taking too many classes. A time-turner?" Maybe Harry was not as dead to the world as Draco had thought. He smiled in his sleep and mumbled, "Draco."

That was close enough to an invitation to stay. Draco sat on the foot of Harry's bed and examined the map to see how it worked and to keep tabs on the other Harry's movements. Eventually one Harry would have to vanish. Draco wanted to watch and see what would happen on the map. If one Harry saw another Harry, the time-turner would break and the time-traveling Harry would vanish. Harry needed help, more than what Hermione Granger could offer. He should have told Draco in the beginning.

Draco looked up just in time to see sleeping Harry vanish, messy hair and all. A few seconds later, the bed curtains opened and Harry was standing outside. He did not look like he had been sleeping for at least an hour in his clothes with rumbled hair. Draco did not completely understand how the time-turners worked, but Harry was not surprised to see Draco on his bed.

"I'm sorry," Harry said. "I should have told you, but Professor Dumbledore said not to. Fred and George and Cho figured it out on their own. Hermione said you could see me in different places in Divination."

"I was still too stupid to figure it out until the twins showed me this awesome map. Dad and Uncle Sirius and their friends made it, and somehow Fred and Greg got it. Now it's mine," Draco said. He handed the Marauder's Map to Harry, but he stayed sitting on Harry's bed. It was comfortable there. "But you're right. You should have told me about the time-turner."

Harry looked at the map and said, "Your dad must have been brilliant. Why didn't the Weasleys tell us about this years ago?"

With the Maurader's Map, Draco could sneak out after curfew and never be caught again. He could sneak around and spy on the other houses' Quidditch practices. He would be able to ruin all of Chang's attempts to get Harry alone.

Unfortunately, Draco was a good friend, and he knew of someone who needed it more than he did. He told Harry, "You should keep it for now. It's called the Maurader's Map. It shows where the other Harrys are. Turn it on by tapping it with your wand and saying 'I solemnly swear I am up to no good.' Then to turn it off tap it with your wand and say 'Mischief managed'."

"Thank you. Sometimes I seem to be everywhere in this school. There have been a few close calls. I'm glad you know about the time-turner now." Harry turned the map off, carefully rolled it up, and put it in his pocket. "By the way, you really shouldn't have done that to my hair. Cho thought it was funny but—"

"That's great. I live to provide Cho Chang with entertainment. What else does Chang like, so I can please her in every way possible? What were you doing with her?" Some part of Draco's brain knew that it was a bad idea to sound like a jealous housewife, but he really did not like hearing about Chang.

Harry was no good at dealing with the on-going war between Draco and Cho. He groaned helplessly and said, "Draco, don't be like this. She is my girlfriend. You are my best friend."

"You like me the most, right?" Draco said with a quick smile to hide the sincerity in his question.

Harry smiled and looked around the dormitory to make certain that they were still alone, then said in a lowered voice, "She let me kiss her tonight."

"What? You mean, you hadn't? But I thought— I mean, how was it?" Not that Draco wanted to know what it was like to kiss Cho Chang, but it was still his best friend's first kiss, though months too late.

"Wet. I'm tired, so would you mind getting off my bed?"

That was the right answer. 'Wet'. Cho Chang had no chance at becoming the next Mrs. Malfoy, and Draco looked forward to her humiliating rejection.

"I bet Chang would love to know that you had me in your bed at the same time when you were snogging her. Good night!" He gave Harry a playful kiss on the cheek – Harry Malfoy's _second_ kiss – and cheerfully hopped off the bed.

* * *

There was snow on the ground during the second Hogsmeade trip in December. There was no snow in Draco's vision, so he did not insist on Harry wearing the furry hat this time. Harry did, anyway, because he said that the furry hat was both warm and stylish. There was no attack, though Draco thought he saw the rat from his visions on the street. 

Draco Potter went home to Godric's Hollow for Christmas holidays. All Aunt Bella wanted to talk about was the death of all her enemies. She had many enemies, so she never ran out of things to say. To keep her happy, Draco told her all about Harry Malfoy's fatal weaknesses.

Creepy Peter Pettigrew and Professor Lupin came to the Potters' big New Year's Eve party. Narcissa Potter tolerated Mr. Pettigrew's presence for Aunt Bella's sake. Aunt Bella told everyone that Mr. Pettigrew was secretly a Death Eater and that he would join her in her campaign to kill all her enemies. She was still very, very crazy and delusional. Professor Lupin used to be one of Draco's dad's best friends, but Draco's mother hated him and was annoyed that Sirius had invited him to the party.

"We need to kiss up for Draco's sake," Uncle Sirius said. "If we get Moony drunk, Draco can take incriminating photos and use them for blackmail to improve his Defense marks." Uncle Sirius was Draco's favorite relative. The only incriminating photo Draco took was of Sirius kissing Professor Lupin on the lips at midnight.

Harry had stayed at Hogwarts over the Christmas holidays to study too much. The headmaster had told Harry that he was using his time-turner too often outside of classes, so now Harry always needed more time for his class work. Cho Chang also stayed at the castle over the holidays and complained the whole time about how Harry never spent enough time with her.

"You should dump her," Draco said during dinner in the Great Hall on their first night back, "and you should drop Care of Magical Creatures."

Hermione Granger said, "Marietta says that Cho says that you haven't asked permission to formally court her."

Draco would have cackled gleefully at that item of gossip if he did not see Harry's reaction to the remark. He was angry in an especially restrained, cold, Malfoy way. He said quietly to Hermione and Draco, "Cho must not have told Marietta that I have already told Cho that I am not interested in a formal courtship. I am only thirteen. Besides, Father would never approve of her. We have no connection to her family."

This was the first time that Draco and Hermione had heard this. Harry was never serious about courting Cho? Why didn't he tell Draco that months ago? Then maybe Draco wouldn't have been quite so mean about her.

Hermione was not as happy as Draco was about this new information. "Then why are you still dating her?" Hermione snapped. "Your father is such an unbelievable hypocrite. What connection do the Malfoys have to your mother's muggle family? He can't tell you who to marry."

"You don't know the old wizarding ways," Harry said.

"You're a half-blood," Hermione said. "According to the old wizarding ways, people like us don't matter. Your ancestors would have disowned your father for marrying a muggle-born, and you wouldn't be acknowledged as a Malfoy at all. The old wizarding ways are out-dated and wrong. Potter is a pureblood, and he's not worrying about who his father wants him to marry."

This was not a conversation that they should be having in the Great Hall. When Hermione Granger was angry, she yelled. When Harry was angry, he would lose control over his magic and break things. The other Gryffindors were already looking at them and trying to hear what they were talking about.

Before Harry could say whatever nasty thing he was thinking of saying next, Draco said very loudly, for the benefit of all the nosy eavesdroppers around them, "Dad has _lots_ of ideas about who I should marry. After our last Quidditch match, Dad said I should marry Oliver Wood. I told him that I could do better, like Victor Krum from the Bulgarian national team. Have you seen Krum fly? There are pictures in this month's _Quidditch Monthly_."

Now that Draco had made a fool of himself, Harry and Hermione noticed that everyone was listening to them and both looked embarrassed. Draco wasn't. He liked being the center of attention. He now called down to other people at the table and asked for their opinion on who he should marry, Oliver Wood or Victor Krum. Gryffindor House as a whole was evenly divided on the issue.

After dinner Harry and Hermione did not continue their argument about Cho Chang, the Malfoy family, and ancient wizarding traditions. They both had too much work to do for their classes.

* * *

The next Hogsmeade trip was the weekend before Valentine's Day. Once again, there was too much snow on the ground for Draco's vision to come true. But this time Draco wasn't worried at all about the attack because he had to prepare for his first date. 

"What if we run out of things to talk about?" Draco asked Harry. "Do I have to laugh at his jokes? I'm much funnier than Oliver is."

Harry picked out clothes from his wardrobe and shrank them so they would fit Draco. Draco was still waiting for a growth spurt or two. At least he did not look completely like a little, prepubescent boy any longer. His voice still sometimes cracked and squeaked when he was excited or nervous – he had better not become too excited and nervous today, that would be _so_ embarrassing – but it was mostly settled at a low tenor.

"I could try to charm your hair," Harry said. "Professor Snape says my magical control has improved enormously this year. I probably won't accidentally remove your eyebrows."

Draco looked at his reflection and shook his head no. "Remember the wise words of Professor Lockhart. It's sexy bed-head hair. It's my trademark. How about my hideous glasses? Can you do eyes?"

Harry took out his wand and said some incredibly complicated Latin phrase, and the world became fuzzy. Draco took off his glasses and the world was nearly perfectly in focus. Draco looked at his reflection in the mirror without his glasses. Wow. His face looked totally different without the awful glasses. In his not-so-humble opinion, he was damn hot for a thirteen-year-old. Harry also looked at Draco's reflection in the mirror and gave a nod of approval.

"Not bad," Draco said. "The vision charm isn't as good as when my mother does it, though. You'll have to practice."

Harry didn't need or expect praise. It had been the first time that Harry had cast the charm, and they both knew it was impressive that it worked at all. He said, "It will only last until dinner time, Cinderella, so don't let Wood keep you out all night."

"In his dreams. I'm not that easy."

"How do you know? You haven't been on a date before." Harry disappeared back in his wardrobe before Draco could throw something at him.

Draco put on Harry's posh clothes and admired his reflection some more. He should have asked Harry to get rid of his glasses weeks ago. He looked _good_.

It did not take Harry long to get ready himself. He transformed a quill into a bouquet of fragrant pink roses. "Don't tell Cho it's a quill," he said, and Draco laughed.

Harry's relationship with Cho Chang had been going steadily downhill since the Christmas holidays. Harry told her that he couldn't use the time-turner to spend more time with her. She tried to make him jealous by flirting with a handsome Hufflepuff boy, Cedric Diggory, and then she was even more annoyed that Harry didn't care. The 'Daily Prophet' published reports that the Boy-Who-Lived's relationship was on the rocks. The end was nigh, and Draco couldn't wait.

"I think today is the day," Harry said. "Cho will finally admit that I am a terrible boyfriend and dump me."

"Best of luck. Granger will be pissed. How do I look?"

"Gorgeous. I told you that my clothes are better than yours." Harry went back to his wardrobe and took out the furry hat. "I'll let you wear the hat if you promise to take very good care of it."

Draco laughed and took it. "Thanks. It's so warm and stylish."


	6. Hogwarts Year 3, pt 3

Chapter 6 – Hogwarts Year 3, part 3

Draco and Oliver Wood were waiting for Harry and Cho Chang in the Three Broomsticks when they heard a huge explosion outside. The glass in all the windows broke. People screamed. Trees on the main street were on fire. There was smoke everywhere.

This was it! Draco's vision of Harry and Cho Chang being attacked in Hogsmeade was coming true! But that meant that Harry was in big trouble, and everyone was running _away_ from the blast instead of going to help Harry.

"Come on, Oliver," Draco said, "we need to save Harry."

As a seventh-year dashing, heroic Gryffindor, Oliver Wood should have been jumping at the opportunity to help a friend in need, but he wasn't. He didn't even put down his glass of butterbeer. "Sit down. Harry Malfoy can look after himself. You'd get in the way."

So much for Draco's first boyfriend. He would call Oliver lots of bad names later for being a coward. Draco Potter was a proper stupid, reckless Gryffindor and did the proper stupid, reckless Gryffindor thing: He took out his wand and ran out of the pub to save the day.

Through the thick smoke, Draco could see the tall outline of Harry Malfoy, pointing his wand but unable to find a target for whatever nasty offensive spells he knew. Behind Harry were two other students, one lying on the ground and the other crouched over the injured person. One of them had to be Cho Chang. Draco was never nice to her, but he didn't really want her to be hurt.

There were more bright lights in the smoke, and Harry stumbled but reflected the attacks with whatever shields he had. Draco didn't know shielding spells. He only knew what he had been taught in class. He could levitate feathers, brew simple potions, and transform useless inanimate objects into other useless inanimate objects. His only useful skills were Quidditch and Divination, but neither would help now.

Wait! He knew how to clear smoke! It was a very useful house-keeping spell to know at Godric's Hollow whenever his mother or father tried to cook something without the house elves. Draco cast the spell with as much power as he could, and he was surprised that it actually worked. The smoke vanished at once.

Now Draco could see Chang was the one on the ground, but she was alive. The Hufflepuff seeker, Diggory, was helping her. Harry was pointing his wand at Draco.

"Not me! I'm on your side!" Draco hollered, but then he saw there were two people in black hooded cloaks and white masks about six feet away from him. Their faces were completely hidden, but they had their wands out. The short, fat one was aiming at Harry. The other was aiming at Draco.

Maybe Draco should have thought about protecting himself before clearing all the smoke. He was totally defenseless and he was standing next to the bad guys. He was dead.

Instead of casting a deadly curse, the bad guy aiming at him said, "Young Draco? You have come to join us in our bloody campaign to vanquish all our Lord's enemies!" The bad guy sounded like crazy Aunt Bella. That wasn't good.

The short, fat one made a big snake appear in front of Harry, and Harry started hissing at it. Maybe that was super-Dark magic that his father had taught him. It seemed to work, because the snake turned and headed back towards the bad guys before it vanished. Both bad guys were distracted by the snake, giving Draco a chance to escape. He cast the first spell he thought of – the jellylegs jinx – and ran.

* * *

Lucius Malfoy came to Hogwarts that evening. Cho Chang was in the hospital wing. Cedric Diggory had saved her from being more seriously wounded during the first explosion. Harry Malfoy was in trouble with the Headmaster because he used strong Dark offensive magic in the middle of Hogsmeade, but he had missed and therefore failed to flay the skin off his enemies. The two bad guys disapparated before Harry could try another gruesome Dark attack. 

Now Lucius Malfoy was at the school to take control. He said that he was there as part of the Ministry of Magic's investigation, and he sent away the aurors that had been questioning Harry, Draco, and Cedric about what they had seen. Harry tried and failed to hide how happy he was to see his father there after his traumatic afternoon. Draco was relieved, too. Now he wouldn't have to worry about the bad guy who couldn't possibly be Aunt Bella. Mr. Malfoy would handle everything.

For once, Mr. Malfoy said exactly what Harry needed to hear: "You did well, son."

"But I let them get away," Harry said, "and Draco and Cho were almost killed."

"Little Draco is fine, and I understand that Ms. Chang will be fine tomorrow." Mr. Malfoy would one day live to regret that 'little' comment, though not yet since Draco was more than a foot shorter than he was. Draco was satisfied that Mr. Malfoy used his first name, but Harry's darling girlfriend was 'Ms. Chang'. She was not important enough for Mr. Malfoy to visit personally in the hospital wing.

"It was my fault," Harry said. "I knew I was a target. Draco saw the attack in a vision, but we thought because of the snow—"

"A vision? You did not tell me that." Mr. Malfoy turned to Draco for a full explanation. Draco was pleased that Harry now believed in his vision, but he didn't want Mr. Malfoy to blame Harry for not believing him until after the attack. No one believed Draco when he was trying to be serious. He was used to it.

Draco told Mr. Malfoy, "I only had the vision once, sir, in Divination class, but there wasn't snow in the vision, so I thought that it couldn't come true until the spring. I'm not very good yet."

"But it was a true vision?" Mr. Malfoy asked.

"Well, I thought it was, but then it didn't come true and I thought it was because Harry wore a hat, and then I thought because it snowed—"

"You obviously don't know anything about interpreting visions," Mr. Malfoy said impatiently. Big surprise, he thought Draco was an idiot, as usual. But then he thought more about the idea of Draco Potter, true seer and Harry's loyal best friend, and said in an almost friendly tone of voice, "You need proper Divination tutorials. I will discuss the matter with the Headmaster and your parents."

That sounded like a lot of extra schoolwork that could get in the way of Quidditch practice, but it would be really, really cool to be able to really predict the future by looking in a crystal ball or at leaves in a tea cup. Mr. Malfoy wouldn't call him 'Little Draco' if Draco was able to predict more attacks.

Draco told Mr. Malfoy about the attacker who sounded like his aunt, but the attacker couldn't be his aunt because his aunt was safely looked after at Godric's Hollow. Mr. Malfoy agreed that it was impossible for Bellatrix Lestrange to be involved, especially since he had been personally involved in attaining her release from Azkaban. Then he continued his investigation outside of Hogwarts. First stop was Godric's Hollow.

* * *

Dear Young Draco, 

I must never write to you again, They say. I must take my medication, They force it down my throat, They think it will make me Good and Weak. I am Not WEAK. I will Not be a CREEPY CRAWLY RAT. Time, that is all I ask more. More time for My Lord's Work.

He who we thought was the Enemy spoke to the Snake. He has been Touched By Our Lord. He who we thought was the Enemy used such wonderful Curses, such DARK Power, such EVIL.

He is not our Enemy. You shall bring him to Join us. Lucius Malfoy must die, but his son is DESTINED for greater things. The Rat will not keep us back this time. The Rat will not make us creep away like Cowards.

You, Me, Harry Malfoy, we will bring back Our Lord and serve him with SUCH BLOOOOOOD BLOOOOOOD BLOOOOOOOOOOOOOD that has only been Dreamed of. I dream of it. Harry Malfoy does, too, I can tell.

Love, Aunt Bella

* * *

"I wouldn't call it a confession, but I wouldn't let anyone else see this," Draco said, and handed the letter to Harry and Hermione Granger to read. "I don't think she likes having Mr. Pettigrew around. He's a rat animagus." 

Officially, the identity of the attackers was unknown. Unofficially, Lucius Malfoy's minions were carefully monitoring everyone who visited Godric's Hollow to identify who was Bellatrix's short, fat accomplice. Not even Mr. Malfoy knew the identity of all of Lord Voldemort's servants. Someone had been a double agent and survived the war, and he or she was now using crazy Aunt Bella in their plans for revenge. The Potters asked Peter Pettigrew to move into Godric's Hollow and look after Aunt Bella full-time. She was too dangerous to be left alone, especially with her unknown accomplice still somewhere.

Hermione said, "I thought she said last month that Mr. Pettigrew was secretly a Death Eater. What changed?"

"She's crazy, remember? Crazy people can change their minds about people. Now she thinks Harry talks to snakes and is going to help her serve Voldemort."

"I only talked to her weird talking snake," Harry said. "I don't see what the big deal is. I told it to go away and it did. You were there, Draco. Did you see?"

Draco had been more concerned at the time with escaping with his life, but he did remember the snake. "Sorry, Harry, but you're wrong. You hissed at the snake. You weren't talking. Are you hearing voices in your head again, like last year? Aunt Bella has medication that's supposed to stop that."

No one laughed at Draco's usual, hilarious, brilliant, Harry-is-a-schizophrenic jokes. Hermione wanted to hear more about the attack, and Harry was confused by the not-talking-yet-talking snake. "I was talking to it in normal English," Harry said. "It responded in English. Only Lord Voldemort can talk to snakes. He was a Parseltongue."

"What's that?" Hermione asked. "Wizards can talk to animals?"

She was such a know-it-all that Draco sometimes forgot that she grew up as a muggle and didn't know a lot of wizarding legends and stories. What if Harry really could talk to snakes? Only the bad guys in wizarding fairy tales talked to snakes. It was creepy and unnatural.

"It's very, very rare," Harry said. He took out his wand and transfigured Draco's empty glass into a small snake. It started to slither away, but Harry cast a freezing charm on it. "If I was a Parseltongue, I'd be able to—" He stopped, looked down at the snake, then started hissing.

This was another conversation that they should not have been having in the Great Hall. Ron Weasley was sitting a couple seats down at the table, but he was watching what Harry was doing and hollered, "Oh my god, Malfoy is a Parseltongue!"

Everyone in the school had always assumed that Harry Malfoy was a super-powerful Dark wizard. Now they had evidence of it. He talked to snakes. To most of the student body, that meant that he was the next Dark Lord in training. Hermione thought it was fascinating, of course. Draco accepted it as another Harry super-power, though not a good one.

Cho Chang could have used it as a good excuse to end her doomed relationship with Harry, but she didn't. She wanted to know what snakes talked about. She told her Ravenclaw friends that it was an excellent opportunity for them to overcome an irrational superstition and to learn more about snake communication.

"I think she must actually like me," Harry said to Draco the next night.

"She's been your girlfriend for months, even though you've been an awful boyfriend since Christmas and only wanted her to leave you alone while you studied," Draco said. "Of course she likes you, you idiot."

"You're right. I've been terrible to her. I'll do better."

Draco was a great believer in forgiveness now. Oliver Wood was forgiven for his cowardice at Hogsmeade after he explained that he had planned on going out and saving the day as soon as he finished his butterbeer, but the attack was already over by then. Hermione said that was the biggest lie she had ever heard, but she hadn't helped during the attack, either. At the time, she had been on a depressingly unromantic walk with Ron Weasley to see the old Shrieking Shack. Draco warned Ron that, if he ever planned on marrying Hermione Granger, he should actually take her out on a real date for Valentine's Day next year.

So Oliver was forgiven, and Draco still had a boyfriend. Most of Oliver and Draco's 'relationship' consisted of talking about Quidditch. Oliver would be leaving Hogwarts at the end of the year, and Draco was clearly though not officially designated to be his successor as the Gryffindor Quidditch team captain.

"You two only ever talk about Quidditch. Do you have anything else in common?" Hermione asked during an especially boring Divination lesson.

'We have loads in common," Draco said, "like we're Gryffindors and … we're boys and … we're from Great Britain … and we're much better at Quidditch than anyone else in this school. What more do we need? Quidditch is like life, Oliver says."

"How is it like life?"

"I forget, but I remember thinking that he was right."

Harry was more accepting of Draco's relationship with the much older Gryffindor because Oliver Wood was sexy. Oliver didn't believe Draco when Draco told him that snooty, prim and proper Harry Malfoy thought he was sexy. Draco liked knowing that he was the only one who knew what Harry was really like.

Harry and Cho still appeared in the 'Daily Prophet' together. Once the 'Prophet' announced that she was pregnant. The next week it said that they were breaking up. Then it predicted their engagement. Then it said that Cho was cheating on Harry with Hermione Granger. Harry was not amused when he found out that Draco was making some extra money by giving Rita Skeeter her material. Fred and George Weasley were very, very amused, and they wished they had thought of it first. Then Harry threatened to sue them all, and the 'Daily Prophet' stopped printing Harry-and-Cho stories.

* * *

It took Harry and Hermione until Easter to figure out that Professor Lupin was a werewolf. They heard howling in the Forbidden Forest and realized they were idiots not to have figured it out earlier. 

"He barely even tried to hide it," Harry said. "He disappears during full moons. He's abnormally strong. He growls. I can't believe the Headmaster allows a _werewolf_ to live with children."

"Professor Dumbledore must have made it safe," Draco said, because he liked Professor Lupin and he knew that Professor Lupin gave him special treatment because of his father and uncle. But Draco also remembered all his mother's commands that Draco stay far, far away from Professor Lupin outside of class. "If it wasn't completely safe, the Headmaster would make him go away for full moons. He must go away and then come back when he's feeling better. He could do that. Right?"

Harry wrote to his father about their discovery, of course, and Professor Dumbledore announced the next day that Professor Lupin had been called away for the rest of the year.

Hermione was not happy about that development. "He was the best defense professor we've ever had! Just because he's a werewolf doesn't mean that he cannot have job and be a useful part of the community."

"The Headmaster did not have the approval of the Board of Governors to hire a werewolf," Harry said, quoting the letter his father had sent him that morning. "It is against the Hogwarts school charter to hire non-human staff without explicit Board approval."

"Then the Headmaster should get approval and hire him back," Hermione said. She was also the top of the class in DADA, and she probably wouldn't want to risk her position if a new teacher took over.

"Werewolves are dangerous," Harry said. "Besides, now I can take real defense classes instead of doing more book work with the aurors. I was being punished for my weird power over Dark creatures."

The replacement professor was Draco's uncle Sirius Black, skilled auror and charismatic madman. This should have been awesome news, but Uncle Sirius was insane and his teaching methods were a bit too unconventional.

On their first DADA class with 'Professor Black', Uncle Sirius had announced, "Lupin left behind lesson plans and homework assignments for the next few weeks, but I haven't read your textbooks and I don't want to have to read and correct all your essays. There's a lot of you buggers, and it would take ages. Let's have some fun instead."

He made them begin every class with calisthenics and then do spell-casting drills over and over again to quicken reaction time, improve aim, and strengthen attacks. He attempted to teach them unarmed, hand-to-hand combat, which was such a bad idea that no one complained when Harry Malfoy wandlessly and wordlessly levitated Professor Black and wouldn't let him down until he assigned them some book work.

"I'm teaching you to be aurors!" Uncle Sirius said in his defense. "If you want to defend yourself against the Dark Arts, you need to train hard."

"Not all of us want to be aurors," Harry said. "And not all of us need to be _defended_ against the Dark Arts." Draco tried very hard to laugh at the comment, but he knew his fake laugh didn't convince anyone. Harry Malfoy did not often mention the obvious fact that he was a very powerful Dark wizard, but it was creepy whenever Draco thought about it.

Once Sirius was back on the ground and had assigned a reading chosen at random from Professor Lupin's lesson plans, he said, "10 points to Gryffindor for the good laugh. I haven't been levitated by Harry Malfoy since Draco's ninth birthday party."

He was crazy. More damning to Harry, Hermione, and Cho Chang, Uncle Sirius had no idea what would be on the OWLs or NEWTs.

In addition to his teaching duties, Uncle Sirius was in charge of monitoring Hogwarts security. The wards had been attacked several times, presumably by Aunt Bella's unknown accomplice. Harry and Draco had seen Mr. Pettigrew on the Marauder's Map late at night, probably meeting with Sirius about new leads on the case.

* * *

In late May, Lucius Malfoy sent Harry an unusual request. Harry received the owl during breakfast. "'Invite Cedric Diggory to dinner at the most expensive restaurant in Hogsmeade on Friday evening.' Why would I do that?" 

Harry did not usually let his friends read his letters from his father, but this one was so strange that he handed it to Draco to read. It was only a couple lines long. Just dinner. No explanation, no ulterior motive hinted at. Draco handed it to Hermione to see whether she could understand the twisted inner workings of Lucius Malfoy's mind. She read it, was baffled, and gave it back to Harry.

Hermione suggested, "Maybe the Diggorys are threatening to tell the Ministry about Bellatrix Lestrange attacking you last February." Draco didn't want anyone to hear them talk about Aunt Bella that way, but Hermione made her accusations quietly so the rest of the table could not hear them.

"Hufflepuffs don't threaten and blackmail people," Draco said. And if they dared to threaten or blackmail the Malfoy family, Mr. Malfoy would retaliate with a lot worse than a dinner invitation. "Maybe your father wants to hire Cedric Diggory to be one of his minions after he graduates next year."

"It's something more than that," Hermione said. "Harry never had to take any of Mr. Malfoy's employees to dinner. It must be part of a bribe. Where do Cedric Diggory's parents work?"

Harry wasn't listening to them. He re-read the letter, and said, "Father will explain why eventually. Which is the most expensive restaurant in Hogsmeade?" That comment was addressed loudly to the entire table. Their classmates suggested several, and Harry wrote down the names to compare prices later to figure out which was really the most expensive.

"Diggory should be a cheap date," Draco said. "His family is poor, Weasley-poor. No offense, Weasleys."

"We will take our revenge when you least expect it," George Weasley promised.

"The family isn't important or influential or anything like that," Draco continued. "The Diggorys were in the Order of the Phoenix during the war, but now Mr. Diggory is in some dead-end Ministry job, like Mr. Weasley. No offense, Weasleys."

"Be very afraid, Potter," Fred Weasley threatened with a smile.

"Does Diggory have any hobbies?" Harry asked. "I need conversation topics. I'm the one who is inviting him. It will be my fault if we sit there in awkward silence the whole time because I don't know him and he doesn't know me."

"He's the Hufflepuff seeker," Draco said. Diggory wasn't as good as Chang, but he wasn't bad. He wasn't nearly as good as Draco, of course, but he was crafty. He was super-nice and friendly to Draco and complimented Draco on his flying, even during the middle of the match. It was disconcerting.

"Another Quidditch player? Doesn't anyone in this school do anything else?" Harry was not over the trauma of being forced to be on the Quidditch team in his second year. But he was serious about finding conversation topics, and he said, "Who is winning the House Cup this year? What about professional Quidditch? Who is good this year? What is his strongest subject?"

"I've seen him helping Professor Sprout in the greenhouses," Neville Longbottom said.

Harry grumbled in a low voice that only Draco and Hermione were meant to hear, "Great, now we'll have lots to talk about. Quidditch and herbology!" Draco laughed and patted Harry on the shoulder sympathetically.

"He likes Cho," Hermione said. "Um, not that that helps. But maybe Cho can suggest what you can talk to him about during dinner."

"Tell Chang that you're stealing her next would-be boyfriend," Draco said. "Good idea." Cho Chang had not been flirting with anyone since February, but Draco still hoped that she would leave Harry for Cedric Diggory soon.

"Father didn't tell me to go on a _date_ with Diggory," Harry clarified for the benefit of everyone sitting around them and now listening. "It is only a dinner that will be incredibly awkward and uncomfortable if I don't find some safe topics of conversation. Which department does his father work in?"

"Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures," another Gryffindor said.

"Why do you know that?" Draco asked. "Are we all a bunch of Cedric Diggory stalkers?"

"He lives near us in Ottery St. Catchpole," Ron said. "I don't know him, though. He's older."

The Weasley twins came back the next day with a list of Cedric Diggory's closest friends, every book that Cedric had read in the last year, his marks in all his classes, his favorite foods, his favorite color, his favorite bands, his favorite Quidditch teams…

"Now everyone in Hufflepuff thinks you're going to leave Chang for Diggory," Fred told Harry. "We may have encouraged that rumor. It helped get people to talk. The Hufflepuffs think that you would be a very cute couple. They say that Diggory would be able to turn you to the Light and save your soul. Just a warning, in case he tries anything like that."

Harry laughed. "I'll have to tell Cho the truth before she starts believing you, too. I'm obeying my father, nothing more." Then he paid the Weasley twins for gathering the information he needed, because he was a Malfoy and the Malfoys pay well for jobs done well.

When Lucius Malfoy wanted Harry to do something, Harry did it quickly. Draco really, really wanted to be there to hear Harry ask out Cedric, and Harry eventually agreed that Draco could come and watch so long as he used an invisibility cloak and he promised not to laugh.

Harry sent Cedric a note during dinner arranging to meet him that evening outside. The air was warm, the sun was beginning to set, the birds were singing on key, the flowers were in bloom, the scene was perfect. Harry took off his school robes before Cedric came and gave them to Draco to hold under the cloak. Draco was surprised to see that Harry was wearing muggle-style clothes.

"Jeans?" Draco asked. He would have laughed, but he didn't want Harry to send him away before Cedric came out. Harry Malfoy never wore jeans. His entire wardrobe was filled with perfectly tailored suits and dress robes.

"I learned about them in Muggle Studies," Harry said. "They look stupid, and denim isn't nearly as comfortable as real, wizarding materials. Why do wizards ever wear them?"

Harry took off his tie and undid the top button of his shirt. Then he tossled his hair a bit and did some wandless, wordless spell that made him look less pale and added a few freckles.

Draco didn't get it. "What are you doing? You don't look like you."

Harry conjured a mirror to check his appearance, then added some wrinkles to his dress shirt. "I'm a Dark wizard about to ask out a Hufflepuff. I'm trying to look non-threatening. What do you think?" Harry smiled and, instead of looking like the son of Lucius Malfoy, he was the adorable son of Lily Evans Malfoy.

"Bizarre," was all Draco could say. He was looking at a parallel-universe Harry Malfoy, a casual, laid-back, muggle-loving version of his best friend. Well, Draco liked Harry the way he was, with his tailored suits, dangerous Dark magic, unforgiving temper, and quiet insults. Nonetheless, Draco really, really wished he had a camera so he could take a picture of Harry now.

Harry accepted Draco's 'bizarre' as a compliment. He banished the mirror and gestured for Draco to pull up the hood of the invisibility cloak so he'd disappear. "Remember, Draco, no laughing."

Cedric Diggory arrived five minutes early. He was still wearing his school robes and looked very messy and shabby. OK, Draco would acknowledge that Diggory wasn't _bad_-looking. 'Tall, dark, and handsome' would not be a completely inaccurate description. He was nearly as muscular as Oliver Wood, thanks to all the years of Quidditch training. He wasn't sexy like Oliver was, because he was a Hufflepuff and they were annoying and definitely not sexy.

Harry had been standing with his back to the school, and now he turned around and gave a very insincere, shy smile. Mission accomplished, he did not look like a super-powerful Dark wizard. He was playing the part of a bashful, nervous schoolboy.

"Hi, Cedric—sorry, I should say, _Diggory_, I don't want to presume—anyway, thanks for coming."

This was the first time Cedric Diggory had ever spoken with Harry Malfoy, but there was no way that he would believe that a _Malfoy_ could be so awkward and inarticulate. He would laugh. He would know he was being manipulated. Draco had joked millions of times about how gullible Hufflepuffs were, but he was still very surprised that Diggory bought Harry's act.

"Please, call me Cedric." Diggory could play the role of the comforting, supportive, dependable older student, a role he was much more familiar with than with being asked out for unclear reasons by a very proud, rich aristocrat.

"Thanks, Cedric. You probably already know what I have to ask. Father thinks we should become better acquainted." Harry _shrugged_ – another moment that Draco wished he could capture on film – and said, "I don't know why, maybe you have a better idea than I do. I wouldn't ask you to waste your time with me if I didn't think that, that, that maybe… Maybe it wouldn't be a waste of time." Harry blushed like a Hufflepuff virgin at the end of his speech. He must know a wordless, wandless spell for that effect.

Diggory was confused, but he did the chivalrous thing. "I don't know why your father would even remember my name, but if you want to, I'll go to dinner with you."

Harry smiled as if he just heard the greatest news in the world, like an international ban on Quidditch or the spread of a deadly virus through all of Professor Sprout's greenhouses. "You will? Really? Thanks, Cedric! It really means a lot to me. And my father, too."

Draco had promised again and again that he wouldn't laugh, but Harry pretending to be a shy Hufflepuff was more than he could take. That was how he realized that Harry had put a silencing spell on him. Harry really did have everything planned out.

After Harry had dismissed Diggory – who didn't even know that he was being dismissed – he took the silencing spell off of Draco and let him take off his invisibility cloak.

Once Draco could stop laughing, he said, "I thought you were over-doing it, but Diggory seemed to buy it."

"Hook, line, and sinker. I thought he was supposed to be the smart Hufflepuff." The shy school boy act was definitely over. Harry put on his school robes to hide his muggle clothes, the extra freckles disappeared, and his hair neatly arranged itself.

"You were doing a good job of pretending to have a big crush on him."

Harry smirked in an especially Lucius-Malfoy-esque manner. "Father would be proud of me. Good manners requires a lot of lying and play-acting, and I've been taught good manners for my entire life. Have I ever told you that I find clunky glasses with thick lenses to be really, really attractive?"

Draco laughed. "Sorry, I'm too impolite. Your good manners and fake flirting don't work on me."

They went straight to the Owlery so Harry could write to his father with the details about the dinner. Mr. Malfoy required the name and address of the restaurant, the planned route they would take to get to there, and the exact times they would leave Hogwarts and the restaurant. He still did not tell Harry what he was planning.

* * *

Harry met Cedric Diggory at six o'clock to go to Hogsmeade on Friday evening. Draco had planned on spending the evening in the Gryffindor common room talking about Quidditch with Oliver, Ron, and the Weasley twins, but then Harry was back at eight o'clock and he looked like a wreck. He wore no cloak, his clothes were muddy, his hair was messy, and his face was flushed from running. 

Everyone in the common room stopped and stared at him. Harry was still out of breath, but he did manage to say, "Draco, Hermione, come." Draco and Hermione immediately followed him into the corridor.

"I'm using my time-turner," Harry said. "There's about ten minutes left. Then I'm going to be kidnapped on the road back to Hogwarts. I can't find Professor Snape or Mr. Black. Hermione, use the Marauder's Map and get them. Tell Professor Snape to tell my father."

"No, go tell the Headmaster. He'll bring aurors," Draco said. "What part of the road?"

"About two hundred meters from the school gates," Harry said. "It's Bellatrix and her accomplice. I used my time turner as soon as I realized what was going on. I only had a chance to turn for a half hour. Hermione, go!" She didn't need to be ordered again. She ran off to the Headmaster's office. That left Draco to save the day.

"Where's Diggory?" he asked. "Did they get him, too?"

"No, I don't think so. Come on, we need to go back so you can tell Diggory what's happening. I don't know if I'll have time to get there. And we'll make a plan. Come on."

It wasn't a very good plan, and it could go horribly wrong and get Draco killed, but Draco was ready when Harry disappeared and Draco found Cedric with his wand out and ready to plunge into the Forbidden Forest to defeat Evil.

"Diggory!" Draco hollered. "Hermione is getting help. It's my aunt."

"Potter? Where did you come from? What's going on?"

"Harry got kidnapped but then he used a time-turner and went back a half hour and told us what's happening and now I'm going to cause a diversion. Hide. Aunt Bella! I'm here! Your nephew! Little Draco! I want to serve our lord now."

Silence. Draco looked into the shadows of the shrubs and trees on the edge of the Forbidden Forest and didn't see any movement. Was he too late? Did Aunt Bella already escape with Harry? He didn't have a back-up plan, so he tried again.

"Aaauuuuunnnnnntttt Beeeeelllllllaaaaaaaa!!!!!!!!"

Suddenly Draco was flying through the air, and he didn't think their plan was working out like he thought it would. He was propelled through the forest, narrowly dodging trees and other obstacles, and then fell to the ground in a grassy clearing. Thanks to the bright full moon, he could clearly see Aunt Bella and Mr. Pettigrew standing in front of him. Harry Malfoy was lying on the ground bound in ropes and chains.

The situation wasn't nearly as bad as Draco had feared. Mr. Pettigrew was already there, and he would now subdue Aunt Bella and free Harry. Draco sat up and was surprised when Mr. Pettigrew cast a spell on him that bound him in ropes, too. He didn't have as many ropes as Harry, but it was enough to prevent him from moving any more.

"Untie my nephew, Rat," Bellatrix said. She thought she was in charge and Mr. Pettigrew was her servant. Was her unknown accomplice coming? Maybe Mr. Pettigrew was playing along to lure her accomplice into revealing himself or herself.

Whatever the plan was, Draco did not want to be tied up. "Please untie me, Mr. Pettigrew," he said as politely and pleasantly as he could manage. "I only want to help. Right, Aunt Bella?"

"He can help where he is," Mr. Pettigrew said in a weirdly cold tone of voice. "Perhaps he can help us a great deal." He was doing a very good job of convincing them that he was really helping Aunt Bella in her crazy Death Eater plot. Draco was impressed and kind of intimidated. But Mr. Pettigrew wouldn't really let anything happen to Draco. Draco's parents would never forgive him if he let Draco get hurt.

Draco's diversion was not as diverting as he had hoped. He was left tied up on the ground, and Aunt Bella and Mr. Pettigrew turned to Harry Malfoy. Harry wasn't moving or struggling with his bonds and he hadn't made a sound since Draco's appearance, but he was watching everyone very closely and planning his brilliant escape.

"If we want Harry to join us, shouldn't we untie him?" Draco called out.

Aunt Bella cackled in an especially insane manner. "Young Draco, you must learn how to deal with the Malfoys. They are betrayers, liars, back-stabbers, and murderers."

Sounds like perfect Death Eater material, but Draco didn't say that. "Harry isn't like that. He won't run away, but he won't listen to you unless you release him."

Mr. Pettigrew turned and cast something at Draco that sent him crashing to the ground again. That hurt a lot! Didn't Mr. Pettigrew know that Draco was on his side? Only someone as crazy as Aunt Bella could think that Draco would want to be a Death Eater. Draco wanted to say something more to keep them away from Harry, but all he could manage was a groan.

"Don't hurt Draco," Harry ordered. "I won't help you if you hurt him." He was not in a position to give orders, but Malfoys were good at ordering everyone around. Whether he was listening to Harry or not, Mr. Pettigrew did not cast anything else painful on Draco.

Aunt Bella said, "Harry Malfoy, we know you will help us. You already embrace the Dark and Evil. Dumbledore fears you. Your classmates fear you. Now you will give them a reason to. But you are a Malfoy, so you must be bound to our side irrevocably."

Mr. Pettigrew was more direct. "Swear your allegiance to the Dark Lord, or else I'll kill your friend here." As an extra dramatic gesture, he cast something awful on Draco that hurt a whole, whole lot, and Draco cried out in pain. Then the intense pain stopped, but Draco still felt awful. It didn't matter what Mr. Pettigrew's plan was. Draco was never going to let his parents invite him back to Godric's Hollow ever again.

Where were Hermione and Dumbledore? When would the aurors come?

Draco couldn't see Harry, but he heard Harry's gasp when Mr. Pettigrew cast whatever awful curse it was. Harry sounded very uneasy when he said, "Mrs. Lestrange, he's your nephew. Mr. Pettigrew is hurting him."

Good point. Crazy Aunt Bella thought that Draco was already on her side. She said, "Draco will be safe because you want to fight with us, Harry Malfoy." That wasn't very reassuring. Draco didn't say anything, though, because he still hurt a lot from whatever Mr. Pettigrew did to him. He couldn't even sit up. He lay on his back and watched the woods around them and waited for help to arrive.

Then it did. Several trees around the clearing burst into flames, and Draco saw Cedric Diggory disappear quickly back into the woods before Aunt Bella or Mr. Pettigrew saw him. The fires distracted Aunt Bella and Mr. Pettigrew from Harry and Draco. They also served as a beacon for their rescuers: Sirius Black, James Potter, werewolf-using-Wolfsbane Remus Lupin, Severus Snape, and Lucius Malfoy and his minions.

Hermione, Professor Dumbledore, Professor McGonagall, and the team of aurors who came soon afterwards were told that it was a family matter. Lucius Malfoy would take care of everything. The Headmaster took Draco back to the hospital wing to be treated for the after-effects of the Cruciatus curse.

* * *

"Mr. Pettigrew was Mrs. Lestrange's accomplice all along," Harry explained to Hermione and Draco the next morning. Harry and Hermione had come to visit Draco in the hospital wing after breakfast, and Harry had set up super-powerful privacy wards so they could discuss the 'family matter'. Mr. Malfoy had used very unethical methods to get a full confession from Mr. Pettigrew last night, and Harry had been allowed to listen. 

"Why?" Hermione asked.

"He changed sides during the war," Harry said. "If the Dark Lord had lived another day, he was going to go after you, Draco, and Mr. Pettigrew was going to let him through the wards to your house. He's been searching for traces of the Dark Lord in Eastern Europe for years."

That was too much information for Draco to deal with at once. #1: He had nearly been murdered by Voldemort when he was a baby. #2: Mr. Pettigrew was a Death Eater. #3: Mr. Pettigrew had been lying to everyone for decades. #4: Damn, Mr. Pettigrew really would have killed him last night.

"What happens now?" Draco asked. "Is Mr. Pettigrew going to prison?"

"He used an Unforgivable on Draco," Hermione said. "That means Azkaban."

Harry shook his head. "If we turn him in, our parents get into trouble about Mrs. Lestrange. Father says he'll deal with him."

Usually Draco would find Mr. Malfoy's ways of 'dealing' with people to be scary, but this time he approved. Mr. Pettigrew deserved whatever awful things Mr. Malfoy did to him. He was a Death Eater, and he had been living at Godric's Hollow for months!

"And Mrs. Lestrange?" Hermione asked.

"She won't be staying at Godric's Hollow. Father will look after her, too."

"Why was your dad there last night?" Draco asked. "He came before Dumbledore."

Harry was not happy telling this part of the story. "It was all a trap, and he didn't warn me. He wanted everyone in the school to know that I was going to be walking to Hogsmeade last night. Mr. Pettigrew had been passing through the wards as a rat" – Draco's hundreds of rat visions in Divination! He was so stupid! – "and he heard the gossip about Diggory and me. Father was waiting for the ambush, but they lost me when I used the time-turner. Luckily Diggory went after you and set those fires."

"The fires were a great idea," Hermione said. "Diggory saved you."

"He wouldn't have found you without me," Draco said. "I saved you, too."

Harry smiled. "That's what I told Father. He says he'll reward you appropriately. What do you want?"

"Box seats for the Quidditch World Cup."

* * *

Gryffindor won the Quidditch Cup again, and during the celebrations, Draco asked Oliver Wood to marry him. Oliver turned him down, but he finally appointed Draco to be the new Gryffindor Quidditch captain. Draco was going to be the youngest Quidditch captain ever! 

The only other event of equal awesomeness was that Cho Chang dumped Harry Malfoy after the execution of Buckbeak, the murderous hippogriff. Harry said that the beast deserved it, and Cho said that Harry was being insensitive to Hagrid's feelings. Harry said that he did not care what a drunken half-giant thought or felt. Harry was regularly attacked by Light creatures in the Care of Magical Creatures class, and he hated Hagrid for being more concerned for his awful, ugly animals than Harry's safety. Cho liked Hagrid, and she had liked Buckbeak. And so Harry lost his girlfriend. Finally. She was never good enough for him.

All in all, it was a great ending to their third year at Hogwarts.


	7. Hogwarts Year 4, pt 1

Chapter 7 – Hogwarts Year 4, pt 1

The Quidditch World Cup final match was between Bulgaria and Ireland. The Irish team was stronger overall, but their seeker was nothing compared to Bulgaria's Victor Krum. Draco Potter's box was the best in the stadium, right on the midfield line. He had invited his father, Uncle Sirius, Hermione Granger, Arthur, Bill, Charlie, Fred, George, Ron, and Ginny Weasley, and Cedric Diggory. Cedric had saved his life, after all.

"What did Mr. Malfoy give you for saving Harry?" Draco asked Cedric before the match began. "I hear that the Firebolt II is coming out next year. I bet the Malfoys could get you one. Wouldn't that be awesome?"

Cedric looked a bit uncomfortable by the question, and Draco really, really wanted to know what he got from the Malfoys. Money? The Diggorys were a proud, poor family, like the Weasleys, and they wouldn't want everyone to know that they were taking hand-outs from the Malfoy family. Or maybe a job in the Ministry when he graduated? Mr. Malfoy had very powerful connections in the Ministry.

"Fine, you don't need to tell me," Draco said. "I'll ask Harry. He tells me everything."

"Then—I mean—he hasn't told you?"

How interesting. Draco would ask Harry about Diggory's reward on the train to Hogwarts next week. "Harry is in herbology exile. I tried to send him a portkey to come to my birthday party, but we got caught and now we can't even write."

Draco didn't understand why Harry was strictly forbidden from leaving Malfoy Manor for the entire summer. It wasn't his fault that Bellatrix Lestrange and Peter Pettigrew had tried to kidnap him and make him join their crazy crusade to bring back Voldemort. Now it should be safe for Harry to visit his friends, but he wasn't even allowed to come to the Quidditch World Cup! That was cruel and unusual punishment! Hermione hadn't learned much more about Harry's situation in the letters she got from him and shared with Draco.

Cedric said, "Harry doesn't take herbology at Hogwarts."

Draco thought that everyone knew about Harry Malfoy's herbology disasters, but apparently that story hadn't made its way to the sixth-year Hufflepuffs. He considered telling an extra-colorful version of Harry's evilness destroying all that is green and beautiful in life, but he didn't know whether Harry was still trying to appear harmless and nice to gullible Cedric Diggory.

So Draco said, "Mr. Malfoy brings in a private tutor during the summers. Harry says that the greenhouses at Malfoy Manor make Professor Sprout's look like nothing."

"He's right. They're amazing. But he didn't say—"

"What? You've been to Malfoy Manor? When? Why? Did you see Harry?"

"A little," Cedric said, "but I can't talk about that, OK?"

That wasn't OK, but then the teams came out onto the field. Victor Krum was much, much more important than Cedric Diggory. Victor Krum was great. Victor Krum was Draco's newest biggest hero. Victor Krum was amazing. Victor Krum was kind of sexy in a large-Bulgarian-with-a-big-nose sort of way. Victor Krum was way cooler than Oliver Wood. Victor Krum was really, really, really great…

But even during the most exciting parts of the match, Draco couldn't completely forget about Cedric Diggory's mysterious visit to Malfoy Manor. Harry had never invited Draco there. Something strange was going on, and it had to be Lucius Malfoy's fault. In September, Harry would tell Draco all about Cedric Diggory's visit and he'd tell Draco exactly how much money Diggory was paid, and they wouldn't have to worry about the Hufflepuff again.

* * *

"You're going to _marry_ Cedric Diggory? Are you crazy? Cedric Diggory?" Hermione shrieked. 

For once, Draco had absolutely nothing to say. He just sat there and stared at Harry and wondered how he was going to get Harry out of this mess.

"You're fourteen years old," Hermione continued. "What about a formal courtship? Shouldn't your father want you to do everything properly, before signing betrothal contracts with a _stranger_? What about your mother? She grew up in a normal family. Why would she let your father do this to you?"

Harry, Hermione, and Draco were in a private compartment on the Hogwarts Express. Harry had locked and strongly warded the door before telling his friends his 'big news.' He had known that Hermione and Draco would not take the news well.

Draco wondered how difficult it would be to convince Diggory to break the engagement. Harry would do whatever his father told him to do, but Diggory would want to do the Right Thing.

If she were not so upset, Hermione would have known better than to attack Harry's parents. Now Harry was in his proper Malfoy mode, with perfect hair and a nasty temper. The temperature of the compartment was getting colder by the minute.

"Mum thinks it's a good idea," Harry said. "I do, too. It is for the good of the family. The Diggorys are so Light that Father had to adjust the Manor's wards to let them come in."

Cedric Diggory would feel guilty about pressuring an innocent fourteen-year-old boy into accepting an engagement. Or would it be better to scare Diggory off? If he knew how Dark the Malfoys were, he'd run away like a good Hufflepuff. Draco cast a warming charm on himself, and then on Hermione, too, because she was too busy yelling to worry about frostbite.

"Your father wants to use them to make you look less Dark?" Hermione said. "That's ridiculous. Everyone already _knows_ you are a Dark wizard."

"They won't think I want to be the next Dark Lord if I'm married to a Diggory. Most of the other Light families hate my father. Right, Draco?"

Draco nodded, but he was thinking more about where and when he would be able to find Diggory and talk with him alone.

"You're only fourteen years old!" Hermione said again. "It's not right. It's… it's medieval."

"For muggles, maybe, but not for the _best_ wizarding families."

Oh Merlin, not another argument over old wizarding ways. Now Harry and Hermione's argument was going to get a lot uglier very quickly if Draco didn't interrupt them and say something light and silly. But this wasn't a normal conversation, and Draco couldn't think of any jokes to diffuse the tension.

Draco asked, "How much did the Diggorys get in the engagement contract?" That would influence how much Cedric would resist breaking the engagement.

"Three and a half million galleons," Harry said.

Wow. Not even Hermione had anything to say to that. That was way more than Cedric Diggory was worth. But Draco would still save Harry from this unsuitable engagement. He was a Gryffindor. He had to save his best friend from making a big mistake.

* * *

It was official. Today was the worst day of Draco's life. _No Quidditch for the entire year! _Draco was supposed to be the Gryffindor captain this year. What was the point of school if there was no Quidditch? 

"Harry, can your father fix this?" Draco asked. "Please? Please, please, please?"

Harry said, "Listen."

The Tri-Wizard Tournament was not a suitable replacement for the Quidditch season. Only three students would be able to compete in the tournament, and Draco wasn't old enough to compete even if he were crazy enough to want to. People died in the tournament. It probably wasn't even safe to sit in the stands and watch.

Then the students from Beauxbatons and Durmstrang came in, and the Tri-Wizard Tournament didn't seem like such a bad idea after all. His hero Victor Krum was _there_, in the school, wearing a furry hat.

"That's… that's…" Ron Weasley babbled incoherently. Draco was glad that someone else shared his admiration and appreciation of Victor Krum, though if Ron got in the way, Draco would take drastic measures to get rid of him. Victor Krum was going to be _Draco's_ friend. He was going to teach Draco everything he knew about Quidditch.

"Harry, you have to get Victor Krum to sit with us," Draco said. "He's a Dark wizard, too, right? Your father knows everyone Dark."

He did not often discuss or praise the Malfoy family's Dark connections, but this was a very special occasion. Harry knew that, too, so instead of defending his family from totally true accusations, he said, "I don't need my father's help to do everything," and got up from his seat.

The Durmstrang students were standing behind their creepy headmaster, Igor Karkaroff, while Professor Dumbledore and Mr. Karkaroff talked about whether Durmstrang's big boat would disturb Hogwarts's beloved giant squid. The Hogwarts students were watching every move of the Durmstrang and Beauxbatons students, but Harry was the only one who dared to walk over and greet them himself. As the Malfoy heir and the Boy Who Lived, he was a celebrity in all parts of the wizarding world. Draco knew that Harry was normally quiet and shy, but he was also a well-bred aristocrat and he could be very charming when he wanted to be.

Harry bowed to the group of French and Eastern European students and started speaking to them. First he addressed the leader of the Beauxbatons students, a beautiful girl with white-blond hair almost as light as Harry's. They exchanged civilities with cold, fixed smiles. Draco could tell from across the room that Harry didn't like her. Then Harry turned to Victor Krum, the leader of the Durmstrang students, and started talking much more freely and enthusiastically. At Harry's suggestion, the Beauxbatons students sat with the Ravenclaws, and the Durmstrang students sat with the Slytherins. Harry soon came back to the Gryffindor table, chatting wih Victor Krum as if they were old chums.

When they got closer to the table, Draco realized that they weren't speaking English. Draco heard Harry say 'Draco Potter', 'Hermione Granger', 'Ron Weasley', and the names of other Gryffindors as he pointed them out to Krum. Draco kindly suggested to the second year student sitting next to him that he should consider sitting down at the other end of the table if he valued his life, and so there was room for Krum to sit with Draco, Harry, and their friends.

Harry said in English to the entire table, "This is my new friend Victor Krum from Durmstrang. I invited him to eat with us."

Draco moved down a seat so that Krum could sit between Harry and Draco. Krum was sitting next to Draco! Amazing! Draco introduced himself very enthusiastically as Krum's biggest fan and as the only person in Hogwarts who truly understood and loved Quidditch as much as it deserved.

"That is good," Krum said in response to Draco's long speech about the joys and beauties of Quidditch. OK, so Krum wasn't a very out-going person. He would still become Draco's friend and teach Draco everything he knew about Quidditch. Then Krum said something to Harry in whatever language he spoke, and Harry laughed and said something back and they both laughed more, and Draco knew they were laughing at him but he didn't care. He was actually sitting next to Victor Krum!

"Which language is that?" Hermione asked.

"Bulgarian," Harry said. "Father has many friends from Bulgaria." No big surprise. There were many former Death Eaters, and therefore old pals of Lucius Malfoy, living in Bulgaria.

"What did you say wrong to the Beauxbatons girl?" Draco asked.

Harry quickly set up a privacy bubble so he could say something mean. Draco loved it when Harry was mean.

"She's part animal. Her magic is off. It's disgusting."

Draco was surprised. He knew that Harry didn't like magical creatures, especially the Light creatures that tried to hurt him, and he knew that Harry didn't like werewolves, even though Professor Lupin was a very cool person, and he knew that Harry hated muggles because of his mother's sister's family. But he didn't realize that Harry was really prejudiced against non-wizards.

Then Draco notcied that Harry had included Krum in his privacy bubble. This could be a test. Hermione must have come to the same conclusion because, instead of yelling at Harry for being horrible, she was looking at Krum.

Krum didn't say anything about how incredibly prejudiced Harry was being, but he also didn't say anything in agreement. "What do you think she is?" he asked. (Actually, Krum said, "Vat do you dink zhe iss," because he spoke English with a very heavy accent, but Draco was not prejudiced in any way and accepted foreigners as they were, even if they were not fully human.)

"Veela," Harry said, in the same tone as someone else would say "skunk". Then he took down the privacy bubble and said, "She didn't like me, either."

Draco said for the benefit of everyone else at the table, "She must be jealous of you, Harry. If she's _part-veela_" – it's nothing to be ashamed of, she would be flattered by the rumor if it wasn't true – "then she expects to be the best-looking in her school, and now you're here."

This led to a general discussion of the relative attractiveness of Harry Malfoy versus Fleur Delacour of Beauxbatons, with Draco as Harry's most enthusiastic supporter. Krum could not be persuaded to choose a side. He was more interested in getting Hermione Granger to talk to him. He had never met a muggleborn before.

"How do you know your muggle parents are your true parents if they don't have magic?" he asked several times.

Hermione did not appreciate the honor of speaking to a Quidditch god like Victor Krum, and she did not enjoy the stories he told about the way muggleborns are treated in his country. And, on principle, she said that Fleur was prettier than Harry thanks to her wonderful, fantastic, special veela heritage.

It felt like a normal dinner at Hogwarts until Harry left the Great Hall with Cedric Diggory to be introduced to his _fiancé_'s friends in Hufflepuff House. Then Draco remembered that this was really one of the worst days of his life. They canceled Quidditch for an entire year!

* * *

Draco didn't like Cedric Diggory. He refused to break off his engagement to Harry! Even when Draco and Hermione presented all their very good reasons why it was a terrible idea, Cedric said that it was too important to his family. Harry wouldn't even look over Draco and Hermione's list of reasons, but they were used to his fanatic devotion to his father's whims. 

"They can't be married until Harry graduates," Hermione told Draco. "We have nearly four years to stop the marriage. We just need to be patient."

"I'm not patient," Draco grumbled. Then he tried a different tactic.

Draco waited in the Quidditch changing rooms after a semi-friendly, informal, inter-house Quidditch match. Krum and Draco had been seekers. Krum had easily completely and utterly defeated Draco every time they went after the snitch, and it was the most fun Draco had ever had in the air. Cedric had also been there, playing chaser since they didn't need three seekers. He took a long time showering and getting dressed after the match. As a future Malfoy, he was expected to look after his clothes and keep up appearances. Draco thought Cedric tried too hard for the effect that came naturally to Harry.

Eventually everyone else had left except Draco and Cedric. Cedric was carefully combing his hair in the mirror, when Draco came out of the shadows.

"The age of consent in the wizarding world is sixteen. Your child bride is fourteen. Harry tells me _everything_. If you try anything you shouldn't, I'll tell Mr. Malfoy and he'll kill you."

Draco ran off before Cedric could think of anything to say to his threat. He didn't really know whether Mr. Malfoy would care about his son's chastity, but that wasn't important. The important part was that Cedric believed him.

Of course, news of Harry and Cedric's engagement appeared in the 'Daily Prophet' for weeks. The only person who protested and told everyone that it was a terrible idea was the head of Hufflepuff House, Professor Sprout, who would never forgive Harry for the destruction he had caused in her greenhouses. Even this year's weird DADA professor, an ex-auror Alistair Moody, said that the match was a very clever move.

"The Malfoys know how to pick spouses, the vermin," he growled. "They play nice and smell like roses and lie low like snakes in the grass."

Professor Moody was very strange. He liked to demonstrate powerful Dark magic on Harry and challenge him to fight back in class. Mr. Malfoy had told Harry to watch Professor Moody very carefully and to go along with whatever Professor Moody told him to do, so Harry fought back. Once Professor Moody transformed Harry Malfoy into a ferret and bounced him against the floor until Harry broke the spell and transformed back into a human. A ferret! Draco thought it was inappropriate and scary, and he expected Harry to tell his father and get Professor Moody fired, but Harry didn't.

"Professor Moody is trying to kill me, but I'm stronger than he is," Harry told Draco. "Besides, Father wants me to watch him. I can't watch him if he leaves Hogwarts." Harry told Cedric that he was simply helping in DADA classroom demonstrations, and it all looked much more dangerous than it really was.

It was Halloween night, and the Goblet of Fire was in front of the Great Hall. Tonight the champions would be chosen. Draco wasn't eligible to be a champion, but Cedric Diggory was. Cedric had turned seventeen two weeks ago and he had made a big show out of putting his name into the cup. Harry told Draco that Mr. Malfoy had promised Harry that his fiancé would be the Hogwarts champion. Mr. Malfoy would handle everything, so long as Cedric Diggory did as he was told and didn't make them regret their three and a half million galleon investment.

Harry hadn't told Cedric that his father was fixing the selection of the Tri-Wizard champions. Harry said that he preferred to keep his relationship with Cedric as simple as possible. Cedric couldn't morally disapprove of things he didn't know about.

Cedric looked nervous over at the Hufflepuff table. He would soon be crowned the Very Best Wizard in all of Hogwarts. Victor Krum was sitting with them at the Gryffindor table, as usual. He must have also known that the cup was rigged. He was very calm during dinner. He tried to get Hermione to say who she thought would be chosen to be the champions from the schools, but she refused to play along and say how much she thought he would be the strong, brave, wonderful Durmstrang champion.

"I'll bet twenty galleons that you are the Durmstrang champion, Victor," Draco announced. Harry kicked him under the table, but it wasn't like Draco was revealing a big secret. Everyone already guessed it would be Krum.

Mr. Malfoy arrived with the man from the Ministry, Ludovic Bagman. Of course, he would be there to witness Diggory's triumph.

Victor Krum. Fleur Delacour. Then, huge surprise, Cedric Diggory! Everyone in the hall cheered. Draco politely clapped.

The Headmaster began to make a speech about the chosen champions when the goblet lit up again and another piece of paper appeared. They messed up when they were rigging the Goblet! Harry was just as alarmed as Draco, and they both looked to Mr. Malfoy to fix things.

Mr. Malfoy stood up from his seat, but the Headmaster was faster. He reached into the Goblet and took the piece of parchment and unfolded it.

"The fourth champion is … Draco Potter."

* * *

Draco was going to die. Someone wanted him dead. Mr. Malfoy said he couldn't drop out of the tournament, even though Draco took Veritaserum and swore that he did not put his name into the Goblet. Under Veritaserum he also swore that he liked Mr. Malfoy's dress robes and that Victor Krum was very sexy, except for his heavy accent and his odd fascination with Hermione Granger. Then Harry put a silencing spell on him until the Veritaserum wore off, because he was a good friend. 

"We'll get you through the tournament alive," Harry promised when they were alone in their dormitory. "Father will tell Cedric about the tasks, and Cedric will tell us and we'll be prepared."

Draco gestured that he still thought he was going to die.

Harry said, "No, you're not. I'm not going to let you."


	8. Hogwarts Year 4, pt 2

Chapter 8 – Hogwarts Year 4, Part 2

It was the morning of the first task, and Draco was going to be sick. Dragons! Charlie Weasley had given him lots of pointers about how to deal with the different dragons, and Harry had used his unnatural power over Dark creatures and his Parseltongue abilities to talk to each dragon and tell them that they weren't allowed to kill anyone, especially not 'the little one'. They could still hurt Draco a whole lot.

To make matters even worse, Rita Skeeter had printed another ridiculous article about Draco in the morning's 'Daily Prophet'.

"'I'm going to die,' sobbed little Draco Potter, the youngest of the Tri-Wizard champions. 'I'm too young and good-looking to die!'" George Weasley read aloud for the entire table, doing a very bad impression of Draco's voice. He did _not_ sound like a girl. He also did not tell Rita Skeeter that he was 'too good-looking' to die. The 'too young' part was right, though.

Harry was going to bring Draco's Firebolt to the stadium. All Draco had to do was summon his broom and then fly for his life. Krum was wearing fire-resistant, dragon-hide trousers and boots. Fleur and Cedric looked nervous eating at their tables, but they also knew what to expect that afternoon. Only the audience would be surprised by the big, scary, vicious dragons.

Harry poked Draco in the side and said in a low voice, "You won't die. Eat something."

"'Potter has not recovered from being left broken-hearted by his ex-boyfriend, Oliver Wood, now keeper for the Puddlemere United Reserve Team and dating teammate Elisabeth Withers,'" George continued. "'Potter has also recently lost his best friend Harry Malfoy, now engaged to marry Hogwart's true champion, the dashing and handsome Cedric Diggory. "I've been betrayed by everyone I love," Potter said with tears glimmering in his eyes.'"

Harry grinned, then tried not to for Draco's sake, then grinned anyway. "More tears?"

"Can your father sue her for something?" Draco asked.

"I'll ask."

No one knew what was wrong with the Goblet of Fire when it selected Draco as the fourth champion. The 'Daily Prophet' said that Draco Potter had entered himself the tournament for the fame and glory. It did not say how he would have passed the Headmaster's age line or gotten the Goblet to choose an extra champion. The Headmaster told Draco that he should focus on the tasks and 'make Hogwarts proud'. In other words, Professor Dumbledore had no clue what was going on, either.

James and Narcissa Potter were not happy that their young son was taking part in the Tri-Wizard Tournament, and they agreed that it was all Lucius Malfoy's fault. Draco's dad thought that Mr. Malfoy had not supervised the Goblet of Fire properly as the representative of the Ministry of Magic. Draco's mother thought that Mr. Malfoy was intentionally targeting her son and endangering his life to spite the Potters and the Headmaster. Draco's parents were coming to Hogwarts for the first task.

Draco would feel a lot safer if it really was Mr. Malfoy's fault – Mr. Malfoy wouldn't let his son's best friend die – but he knew that it wasn't. He had seen Mr. Malfoy on Halloween night. He had been just as confused and alarmed as the Headmaster. Harry said that his father would find out who was to blame and then punish them severely. That made Draco feel better.

Draco was still the very best Divination student in his year. He met with Professor Trelawney for extra Divination lessons twice a week, and he had asked her assistance in summoning visions to help him with the tournament. As usual, she was no help at all, but she let him use her special amulets and extra-large crystals to focus his energies. It wasn't helping, though. Unless the first task involved a big creepy graveyard, his visions wouldn't help at all. The summon-his-Firebolt-and-fly-for-his-life plan was inspired by the weirdo DADA professor Moody. Harry and Hermione said it was a brilliant idea and it was certain to keep him from being killed. Draco still had his doubts.

Breakfast was over way too quickly, and it was time for the Tri-Wizard champions to go to the champions' tent on the Quidditch Pitch before facing evil, dangerous dragons. Charlie said that he should only worry if he got the Hungarian Horntail. When he heard that, Draco knew with all the certainty of the best Seer in Hogwarts that he was going to get the Hungarian Horntail.

Harry and Hermione walked down with Draco, and they tried and failed to keep him from dwelling on his impending death. Draco's parents were waiting for him at the tent. Draco hugged his mother and told her that he loved her and that he was sorry for calling Aunt Bella 'crazy' and that he was sorry for accidentally freeing her favorite house elf when he was seven and that he was sorry for …

"Draco, dear, you're suffocating me," Mrs. Narcissa Potter said as she very elegantly disentangled herself from her son's embrace. "And you're babbling." She kissed him on the forehead and said, "You won't need your glasses." She always corrected his eyesight the best. He put his glasses away and tried not to apologize for babbling.

James Potter patted Draco on the back heartily and said, "You'll be fine once you get out there. Do you know what you're up against?"

"Yes," Draco said miserably, "but I'm not supposed to."

James smiled and Draco didn't feel quite so hopeless anymore. His father wouldn't be able to smile if he thought that Draco was going to die, and he was an intelligent man. To prove how intelligent he was, he winked and said, "Nice broom, Harry."

"Thank you, sir," Harry said, and then he cast some kind of don't-notice-this-object spell on the Firebolt and Draco wondered whether Harry had forgotten the broom after all.

"By the way, Harry, congratulations on your engagement," James said. "We read about it in the 'Prophet'. The Malfoys know how to pick good matches. Right, Narcissa?"

Draco had no idea what the joke was, but his father laughed and his mother looked a bit embarrassed. His parents were strange. Draco wondered how much Mr. Malfoy had paid Mrs. Lily Malfoy to marry him. It was probably a lot, because she was much cooler and prettier than Cedric Diggory.

Then Harry saw that his father had arrived and was speaking with the Diggorys. Harry went over to be polite to his future in-laws, and Draco and Hermione went into the champion's tent together.

"Did you see Cedric's new robes?" Hermione asked. "Harry bought them during the last Hogsmeade trip, while you were off with Ron and the twins."

If she thought that was going to make him feel better, she was sorely mistaken. If she thought that would keep him from moaning about how he was going to die, she was one-hundred-percent right.

"What? Harry buys him his clothes? Since when? It's not like they're married yet." Now Draco wanted to look outside and see how incredibly expensive and perfect the robes were that Harry gave Cedric. The Malfoys always had excellent clothes.

Hermione, being the skilled manipulator that she was, went further. "Cedric Diggory is representing the Malfoy family. Maybe if he wins the tournament, they'll push the marriage forward."

"What? No!" Draco listed some of the many reasons why that would be a very bad idea until Cedric and Harry came into the tent, and then he was quiet because he was too busy looking at Cedric Diggory's new, Malfoy-provided robes.

Harry said something bland and inoffensive to Fleur Delacour, because he hated her and she hated him, and then he shook Victor Krum's hand and said something very funny in Bulgarian. Draco wished that Harry and Victor would translate their jokes for the non-Bulgarian speakers. Whenever he asked, Victor would offer to give Hermione _private_ lessons in Bulgarian, and she would change the subject and Draco would never hear what the joke was about.

Draco tried to sound like his mother in one of her haughty Black Family moods when he said, "Nice robes, Diggory." _You are a poor beggar who is forced to take hand-outs from young, innocent boys forced into unwanted engagements with you._

Cedric Diggory didn't acknowledge that he was being sneered at. He said quite pleasantly, "Did Hermione tell you? Harry picked it out."

Worst of all, it really _was_ a nice robe. It was forest green with golden trim, and it made Diggory look dashing, heroic, big, and strong. 'Little Draco Potter' was jealous, and he hated that he was six inches shorter and had a lighter build, a higher voice, and messy hair that wouldn't stay out of his eyes.

Hermione saw that Draco was feeling badly, and she assumed that it was the usual fear-of-being-killed-by-a-dragon issue. She said, "Harry, who do you think will win?"

Harry was equally determined to keep Draco happy. He sat next to Draco and put his arm across his friend's shoulders. "Honestly? Or should I say that I hope that Draco and Cedric tie for first place?"

Draco tried to laugh, but now he was thinking about the dragons again and he felt sick. Fleur Delacour was talking to her family in another part of the tent, and Cedric and Victor were nearby pretending that they were talking to each other and not listening to Harry, Hermione, and Draco's conversation.

Hermione said, "Be honest. I think Fleur Delacour will win because of her veela heritage. It enhances magical strength as well as gives her the special allure that Ron won't stop nattering about."

Thinking about Ron Weasley and Fleur Delacour made Draco laugh genuinely. Poor Ron was unable to speak in Fleur's presence. He'd turn an unflattering shade of red and stammer and stare. He felt ridiculous and he asked Draco for ideas of how to stop, or at least how to hide his reaction when Hermione was there. Draco suggested that Ron hide in a cave until the Tri-Wizard tournament was over and hope that Krum hadn't seduced Hermione by then.

Harry said, "If you _really_ want my _honest_ opinion, I think …" dramatic pause "…the winner will _definitely_, without a doubt be …" another dramatic pause "Victor Krum!"

Draco and Cedric both said, "What?" at the same time that Krum said what was probably "YES!" in Bulgarian. Hermione giggled, then she saw how Krum was looking at her and stopped.

"Why?" Draco asked. Not that he was really offended that Harry didn't think he would win as a 14-year-old against three powerful 17-year-olds, but he was curious. Harry was usually annoyingly loyal to Cedric Diggory.

"I've dueled with Victor." That wasn't surprising. Harry sometimes visited the Durmstrang ship and talked about the Dark Arts in Bulgarian, or that's what Draco assumed they did because he was never invited to come along. They probably demonstrated their favorite Dark curses to each other for laughs.

Then Mr. Malfoy and Mr. Bagman from the Ministry announced that only the Tri-Wizard champions were allowed to stay in the tent and everyone else had to leave. Hermione kissed Draco on the cheek, and Harry gave him a hug and whispered in his ear, "If you want me to take care of the dragon, call my name and I'll do it." Then they left.

Draco picked the Hungarian Horntail, and he knew he was going to die. Cedric went out first. Then Fleur. Then Krum. And then it was Draco's turn.

The Hungarian Horntail looked mean and nasty. Draco really hoped that the dragon knew that he was the 'little one' that it especially was not allowed to kill. Maybe Harry should shout a Parseltongue reminder to the dragon to refresh its memory. But he would only call for Harry to help him if he was about to be eaten or dismembered or hurt very, very badly.

"Please don't kill me," Draco said aloud, and the dragon screeched something that did not sound like an agreement. And so Draco's task began.

He was so scared that he messed up the summoning charm the first time he cast it, but it worked the second time. Harry may have cast something to speed up the broom, and it was soon in Draco's hands and he was flying.

Now how to get the dragon away from the egg. Draco flew in loops closer and closer to the dragon, but it didn't start to chase after him until he was so close he could feel the heat of the fire in its breath. And then everything moved too quickly. He flew high, low, feints to the left and right, but the dragon was faster than any of Draco's opponents in the air. It was even faster than Victor Krum. Draco made an especially daring and stupidly life-threatening loop that sent the dragon crashing into the side of the stadium, and then he flew to get the egg. Then he flew faster to get out of the arena when the dragon came after him for revenge.

He survived. So did the other champions. Now Draco had his very own large, golden, screaming egg. Lucky him.

* * *

Draco wasn't supposed to be a Tri-Wizard champion, so he didn't see why he should be forced to stay at Hogwarts over the Christmas holidays and go to the Yule Ball. He didn't know how to dance, and he was not going to learn just because Professor McGonagall told him that he was expected to open the ball. There were already three champions to dance at the opening. They didn't need a fourth. 

Besides, Draco didn't have a date. How could he dance at the opening of the ball if he couldn't dance and he didn't have a date? Harry was going with Cedric, Hermione was going with Victor Krum, Ginny was going with Neville, Seamus was going with Lavender, Angelina was going with Fred… There wasn't anyone left.

Then Pansy Parkinson asked him to the ball during potions class, and Draco was so shocked that he didn't protest when Harry accepted for him. Pansy Parkinson was an evil Slytherin. Why should Harry want him to go with her?

"Her parents are friends of my father's. She's all right," Harry explained while Snape lectured about some boring potion that Draco had never heard of. Harry would tell him what to do when they had to make it.

"You know her? But you never talk to her."

"We can't be friends. Father said so. It's politics. But she had the same dance tutor that I had, so I know that she'll be able to dance with you without you knowing what you're doing. She needs a pureblood date. You need a date who can dance well." Harry had obviously already thought about the matter, and that was very, very suspicious. How could he know that Pansy Parkinson, the most popular girl in Slytherin House, would still need a date? How could anyone expect her to invite Draco Potter?

"Did you tell her to ask me?" Draco asked, and Harry smiled and Draco knew that Harry had.

"I didn't tell her anything. We never talk. I may have sent word through one of Victor's friends, though." The sneak! Thank Merlin for Harry, because Draco really had had no idea what he was going to do about the Yule Ball. Now he had an evil date who could dance as well as Harry Malfoy. Cool.

Hermione didn't like Pansy Parkinson, and she thought that Draco should have asked out one of the Patil sisters, or Ron, or Hagrid or anyone else in the world who was not Pansy Parkinson. Then Ron sat with them and wanted to know what they were talking about and Hermione couldn't talk about the Yule Ball anymore because she was trying to keep Ron from finding out that she was going with Victor. Everyone else in the school knew, but Ron was still asking about Hermione's 'secret date'. Ron's date was Eloise Midgeon, the least attractive girl in all of Hogwarts.

At Draco's insistence, Harry took charge of getting the fourth year Gryffindor boys ready for the Yule Ball. Everyone knew that Harry Malfoy was the best-dressed student in the school. Ron's dress robes were so awful that they had to be burnt, and Harry transfigured one of his old dress robes so it would fit Ron. Draco's dress robes were black velvet, which Harry declared to be totally unoriginal and unobjectionable. Neville's dress robes needed to be lengthened slightly, Seamus's were the wrong color, and Dean's hair was all wrong.

Eventually, Harry sent them all away so he could get ready for the ball. Draco stayed to help. Before Harry took his robes from his wardrobe, he warned Draco, "If you laugh, you're not allowed to stay."

"Why would I laugh?" Draco had seen Harry wearing the formal Malfoy dress robes whenever they were outside of Hogwarts. They were old-fashioned and very expensive-looking, but they were not ridiculous.

"It's my first formal event with my fiancé," Harry said, as if that explained anything. When Draco didn't say anything, Harry said, "Did your parents teach you anything about being a wizard? Engagement robes? Ever heard of them?"

"No. Are they funny-looking?"

Harry took them out of his wardrobe and tossed them onto his bed in front of Draco. Draco didn't laugh. There was a tunic and pair of trousers that looked like they were made from silk that was so pure white that they glowed. The robes were dark blue, like normal Malfoy dress robes. They were lined with white fur, and the Malfoy family crest was embroidered on the back with small jewels. Harry took a casket from his wardrobe that was filled with jewelry.

"I asked Father whether they were really appropriate for a school dance, but he said that he wore the same robes after he announced his engagement," Harry said. "It's traditional."

"What does Diggory have to wear?" Draco asked.

"Black velvet, what else?"

Draco chuckled awkwardly at Harry's joke, and he felt very under-dressed, poor, and inferior. That was probably the intention of the Malfoy engagement robes. "No, really."

"Really. Cedric's dress robes are black velvet, just like yours and probably half the rest of the school. The Diggory family gave up engagement robes three generations ago. As you said, they are Weasley-poor. You have to help me with these robes. They are designed to be put on with the help of a dozen servants."

The robes magically adjusted themselves to fit Harry's frame perfectly. He complained a bit more about them being too formal, but he still made certain that Draco fastened every single clasp and button, and then he went through the casket of jewels to find the most suitable brooches, bracelets, and rings.

Draco didn't like Harry's engagement robes. The glowing white silk garments made Harry's skin look extra-pale and his hair extra-white-blonde. He looked innocent and delicate and not like the super-powerful Dark wizard that he was. The rich outer-robe and the jewelry were emblems of the strong family tradition, power, and pride. Draco always knew that the Malfoys were wizarding nobility and insanely rich, but now Harry was showing it off and enjoying it, and Draco didn't like that.

While Harry was spending ages examining himself in the mirror and deciding whether or not to wear another silver chain and amulet around his neck, Draco said impatiently, "You'll be a beautiful bride some day, Harry. Now stop preening so we can pick up our dates."

Pansy Parkinson was a surprisingly entertaining date, once Draco got used to her insults about him and everyone he knew and liked. She reminded him of his mother, the elegant and evil Mrs. Narcissa Black Potter.

"Congratulations, Potter," she told him after the opening dance. "You are officially the worst dancer I've ever met. If you weren't with me, you'd be the laughing-stock of the entire school. You are an embarrassment to pureblood wizards everywhere." She was smiling and clearly enjoying being at the center of everyone's attention, so Draco thanked her for saving him from complete dance disaster and asked her to dance with him again.

The Yule Ball was supposed to be in honor of the four Tri-Wizard champions, but Harry Malfoy was the belle of the ball. Cedric Diggory looked alternatively dazzled and embarrassed by his fiancé's elegance. His plain, dark robes made Harry's robes look even more impressive by the contrast. That was probably part of the purpose of the robes. Let the new spouse know from the beginning that he or she would never match the Malfoy family. Draco was glad that he wasn't in Diggory's place.

But when Harry came over and asked Draco to dance, of course he said yes. Pansy had abandoned him to dance with some of her Slytherin friends, and he was not stupid enough to try to dance with anyone else. He was bored, and he felt a bit guilty for being rude to Harry back in the dorms.

Dancing with Harry was easier than dancing with Pansy. Draco was barely conscious that he was following Harry's cues. The movements seemed completely natural. Draco asked, "What did Diggory say about your outfit?"

"Nothing. He just kind of gawked, then he asked me to dance."

"That's not very nice," Draco said, while remembering that he hadn't said anything about Harry's robes, either. "You should buy yourself a better fiancé who will compliment you on your pretty diamonds and emeralds."

"He doesn't like being reminded of how different our families are. You don't like that, either. These robes were a mistake."

"They're gorgeous and you know it," Draco said, maybe as a joke and maybe to make Harry feel better about being the best-dressed, richest boy in the school. "Pansy liked them."

That was a safer subject. Harry somehow managed to get Draco to turn them so they were dancing closer to the center of the dance floor with the other couples. Harry said, "You like her, don't you?"

"I shouldn't, but I do. Just as a friend, though, because she's horrible about Hermione and other muggle-borns, and she has that odd snub nose that makes her sort of look like a pug."

Harry laughed and didn't contradict him because Draco was right. "Speaking of Hermione, do you like her hair? She spent hours on it. I like it, but I don't want her to think that she should have to do all that work all the time to look good."

Draco searched the dance floor for Hermione, who was dancing with Victor. She seemed to be actually enjoying herself. She looked much older and prettier with straightened hair and a nice dress. Hermione was going to be a good-looking witch when she grew up. "I wonder what Ron thinks," he said.

"He left a half hour ago. He was going to make a scene and say something awful, so I made him go away before he could ruin her night."

"How do you know that Ron was going to do something?"

"Legilimency," Harry said, and Draco wished he hadn't asked. _Legilimency?_ Harry could read minds? Since when? "Stop worrying, Draco. I never use it on you or anyone else, only when I think someone is going to do something stupid that I should stop."

Draco knew that Harry could do Dark magic that could hurt and kill people, but legilimency was dangerous and alarming in a different way. "How do you know that I was worrying about you reading my mind if you didn't read my mind?"

"Because I know you. I'm not very good at it yet. Professor Snape is teaching me. Now I'm going to change so it looks like you're leading."

Harry didn't even realize that he had done anything wrong by invading Ron Weasley's mind and reading his thoughts. Ron was one of Harry's friends. Harry had violated him. He was acting like an arrogant Dark wizard who could hurt whoever he wanted.

"I don't think I want to dance with you anymore."

"Why? What's wrong?"

"You tell me."

Draco went out to the gardens to be alone. He knew he would have to apologize to Harry later, but not yet. It was sometimes hard to be Harry Malfoy's friend. Harry did whatever he wanted, even when it was obviously stupid and wrong. Draco had absolutely no influence over Harry, and he hated that. Draco had no power over anything important in his life. He didn't want to be in the Tri-Wizard tournament, he didn't want to be at the Yule Ball, he didn't want Harry to read his thoughts, and he didn't want Harry to marry Cedric Diggory. It was all wrong.

He heard voices, and he saw Diggory nearby talking and laughing with some of his Hufflepuff friends. Cedric looked and acted differently when he wasn't around Harry. He was more relaxed when he was on his own. It wasn't right that Diggory was marrying Harry only for his money, but no one cared about what Draco thought.

Diggory said good-bye to his friends and walked over to Draco. "Potter, can we talk?"

"What?" Draco asked. "I just left Harry back inside. Did you know he's a legilimens? He never tells me anything." He didn't like Cedric Diggory, but Diggory deserved to know about Harry's legilimency if he was going to stay engaged to Harry.

"Harry tells you everything," Cedric said, and that made Draco feel a bit better. "Legilimency?"

"Snape is teaching him. Those lessons are supposed to be for herbology and magical control, not legilimency. Do you think Dumbledore knows?" Draco saw how confused Cedric was, and he wondered whether Harry had even told Cedric about his private lessons with Professor Snape. Draco wanted to be alone and miserable in the dark. He wanted Cedric Diggory to go away.

Cedric didn't go away yet. "I don't want to talk about Harry now. It's about the tournament."

"Well?"

"Have you figured out the egg yet?"

"No. Have you?"

"Yes. I can't tell you how, because that would be against the rules. But you should go take a _bath_. Try the prefects' bathroom, with the egg. A _bath_."

The tournament was hard and scary enough without riddles. Cedric should be helping Draco, not making things even more confusing. Draco said, "Just tell me what to do. I put the egg in the bath and then what?"

"I can't tell you that. The password for the prefect's bathroom is 'Pine-fresh'."

Draco helped Harry unfasten and unbutton his engagement robes later that night. He apologized for walking out in the middle of their dance, and he told him that they had to take a bath tomorrow with the screaming egg in the prefects' bathroom.


	9. Hogwarts Year 4, pt 3

Chapter 9 – Hogwarts Year 4, pt 3

On the night before the second task, Draco slept with his Firebolt in his bed to prevent it from being taken from him and put under the lake. Then he woke up and Harry was gone. How could they put people underwater for over an hour? Draco wanted to ask Hermione whether that was possible, but she was gone, too.

"Where's Hermione?" Draco asked Ron Weasley and Victor Krum at breakfast. Out of everyone in the school, those two would be the best at finding Hermione Granger. Who knows why she deserved such a loyal fan club.

"She's probably at the bottom of the lake by now," Victor said, and he served himself more eggs and bacon. Hermione Granger was the one person in the entire world that Victor Krum would miss the most? He only met her a few months ago! Maybe there weren't any reasonably pretty girls in Bulgaria.

"What are you talking about? The bottom of the lake?" Ron asked, understandably confused and alarmed.

Ron hadn't been told about the clue for the second task. Harry and Draco had figured out the clue in the prefects' bathroom ("If I had known about this place last year, I would have asked my father to make me a prefect," Harry had said, and he now paid Ron for the password so he could continue to bathe there), and weirdo DADA Professor Moody had told Neville Longbottom to tell Draco about the wonderful qualities and myriad uses of gillyweed for breathing underwater. Draco had no idea why Professor Moody was helping him in the tournament. Moody didn't seem to like him more than any of the other fourth-year Gryffindor students. Maybe he bet a lot of money that Draco would win. Professor Snape had reluctantly provided the gillyweed, as a favor for his favorite student, Harry Malfoy. In return, Draco had to work with a different partner for a week and let Harry be unhindered by his incompetence.

"Harry must be in the lake, too," Draco said. "We didn't think it would be people. I was convinced it would be my Firebolt."

Victor laughed, and Ron asked, "In the lake? With the giant squid and the merpeople? Why would Harry and Hermione be in the lake? It's too cold to swim." Ron was ignored.

"Who do you think your hostage will be?" Victor asked.

"Harry," Draco said. "Who else could it be?"

"He should be Diggory's. They are engaged." If Hermione were there, she would have told Victor that he was the most insensitive bloke in Europe to talk about Harry Malfoy's engagement when Draco was already nervous and worried about the task. But she wasn't there, so Victor continued to eat his breakfast and Draco panicked.

Anyone who knew Harry, Draco, and Cedric would know that Draco deserved Harry more, but who was selecting the hostages? Lucius Malfoy would want to show off Harry's engagement to good, virtuous, heroic Cedric Diggory. If Professor Dumbledore selected the hostages, he would give Harry to Draco. Right?

If Harry or Hermione were there, Draco could whine to them and they would say something to make him stop worrying, but they were both under the lake, and Ron was clueless and Victor was the stupid brute who started all these doubts.

"I bet Diggory hasn't even noticed that Harry is missing," Draco grumbled, and he didn't feel like eating anything more.

Draco put on his swimming trunks under his robes, and he walked alone to the lake thinking about all the reasons why Harry would be _his_ hostage and not Diggory's. His parents were there in the audience, but before Draco could talk to them, Mr. Malfoy had called for Draco to join him in the Ministry's tent.

Lucius Malfoy was not happy. Something was not going according to his plans. Something _big_ was wrong, and Draco hoped it wasn't his fault. Let Harry be rescued by Cedric Diggory, if that would keep Mr. Malfoy from hurting him.

Mr. Malfoy glared at Draco and took a handful of gillyweed from his pocket. "I asked Severus about the gillyweed he gave you, and this should be faster acting and better. It was harvested off the coast of New Zealand this morning."

Draco took it, even though he had no idea what was going on. Gillyweed came from New Zealand? Draco said, "Thank you, sir," and he wondered whether this meant that Harry was his hostage. Why else would Mr. Malfoy help him?

He definitely wasn't there to give Draco cheerful words of encouragement. "Haven't you learned how to correct your eyesight by now?" Mr. Malfoy sneered, and he cast the vision-correcting spell on Draco before Draco could be alarmed that this was _Lucius Malfoy_ casting something on him.

Draco took off his glasses and said the only thing he could think of: "Thanks."

"If you are in trouble, don't try to be a hero, especially if you're on your way back with… with your hostage. If you see anyone who shouldn't be in the lake, send the signal for help." Mr. Malfoy looked like he was suffering greatly by having to give Draco support and advice.

"Yes, sir."

Mr. Malfoy's self-torture continued. "Watch the merman elders. They are acting oddly. Head north, through the kelp forest, down a steep slope, and approach the mermen city from the south-east. Listen for their song. It's the same as from the egg."

"Yes, sir. Thank you. Sir."

Draco was relieved that Mr. Malfoy let him go. It was time to get ready to jump into the freezing cold lake. Why would they have a _swimming_ task in late _February_? Would points be deducted if they caught pneumonia? Draco waved to his mother and took off his robes and shivered while Mr. Bagman from the Ministry explained the task to the audience. Then they were off!

Gillyweed didn't just give you the ability to breathe underwater. It turned you into a half-frog mutant. Draco had gills! And webbed hands and feet! He couldn't tell for certain underwater, but he thought his skin had a bit of a greenish tint. Harry, Hermione, and Neville hadn't told Draco about that. They just said it was a brilliant idea and gave him boring books about it that they knew that he wouldn't read.

It was amazing being a half-frog freak underwater. Those webbed feet were great for speed. He zoomed through the kelp forest and was soon the gates of the mermen city, where the mermen were guarding the four unconscious hostages: Harry, Hermione, a little girl with very light-blonde hair who had to be a Delacour, and a dark-haired teen-age boy who Draco had never seen before. There was something odd about the boy, but Draco didn't have time to stop and think about him. He only knew Harry and Hermione, so that meant that Harry was his!

Of course, he had known as soon as he woke up that Harry would be his hostage. No one should be surprised. Harry was his best friend. Only Lucius Malfoy would be pissed. Harry wouldn't be angry at Draco for caring about him more than Cedric Diggory did. It wasn't Draco's fault that Diggory was only after the Malfoys' money.

There would be time to worry about the consequences of the task later. Draco had to save Harry and win lots of points because he was there first. Well, maybe he should stick around to make certain that Victor got there to save Hermione. She was usually his friend and she was sometimes amusing, and he wouldn't want the merpeople to take her away forever like they threatened to do in their song. The two other kids shouldn't be left in the lake, either, if their rescuers got lost. That would be morally wrong. Maybe Draco could rescue everyone at once and win lots and lots of points.

He untied Harry and gently put Harry's body on the ground. The merpeople were watching him, but they didn't react in any way until Draco started to untie Hermione. Then they came swarming around him with their pointy spears. OK, one hostage per champion. Draco would just have to wait until he knew that the other champions had come to collect their hostages. He turned to go back to Harry, and he was not happy to see several mermen around Harry and poking him with their spears.

"Stop that!" Draco hollered, and the mermen stepped away, but not very far away. Where merpeople considered Dark or Light creatures? Hermione would know, but she was still unconscious and tied up. Whatever Harry's effect on merpeople was, Draco would keep them away from his friend.

Victor soon came with his head transformed like a shark. Freaky yet effective. Hopefully he would be transformed back to normal before Hermione woke up. All those teeth looked pretty scary. Cedric Diggory came floating in a big bubble. Draco waved and smiled when Cedric saw that Draco had Harry. But then Cedric saw his own hostage, the teen-aged boy with something weird about his magic, and he was soon gone, too.

It was getting close to the hour time limit, and Fleur Delacour had not come for the little girl. The merpeople were also getting too curious about Harry. If they didn't stop poking him, Draco would tell Mr. Malfoy and Mr. Malfoy would have them all killed. It was time for Draco to save the girl, take Harry, and leave. Of course, that was much easier said than done. The merpeople shrieked and threw their spears, the grindylows turned vicious, and Draco could feel that the gillyweed was beginning to wear off. Luckily they made it to the lake shore before his gills disappeared. It was after the one hour mark, though.

Harry and the little girl woke up as soon as they were out of the water.

"You're my hero, Draco," Harry said. He didn't sound upset about his ordeal underwater being poked at by mermen with spears. He didn't remember a thing. He let his father cast a drying charm on him, and he put on a heavy winter outer robe and his furry hat. He was quickly back to looking like his normal self.

Draco was still wet and freezing and in his swimming trunks. Harry handed him a towel and said, "You still have webbed feet and something weird on your neck. Were they the gills? That must have been good gillyweed."

Then Fleur Delacour came over and made a big fuss over how Draco had saved her little sister and how great and wonderful he was. Harry disappeared to talk with his father. After talking for a few minutes, both Malfoys looked murderously annoyed, and they went back to the castle without waiting to hear that Draco had been awarded extra points for saving Fleur's little sister.

* * *

Harry did not return to the Gryffindor tower until after dinner. He told everyone that he had been spending time with his father, and no one dared to ask for any more details about what they had been doing. Harry looked as unhappy as he had been at the end of the second task, and Draco was glad when Harry told Draco and Hermione to come with him to his room. Now they would hear an explanation. 

Draco and Hermione sat on Harry's bed, and Harry paced and sometimes conjured things to break. It was never good to be in the same room as an incredibly powerful, incredibly angry Dark wizard. Draco knew that Harry would never intend to hurt Hermione or him, but he had seen enough of Harry's accidental magic to be nervous.

"Did you meet Cedric's hostage?" Harry asked. "The person Cedric would miss the most. You'd think that he would have mentioned the existence of a younger brother before now."

"You're angry because you didn't know Cedric has a little brother?" Draco asked.

At the same time, Hermione said, "That was his _brother_? Oh my god! But—" Then she stopped herself from saying something interesting.

Draco tried to remember Diggory's brother, and he remembered thinking that something was odd about him. It was apparently a shockingly bad 'odd', and Hermione and Harry were waiting to see whether he could figure it out for himself. Of course he couldn't! Harry and Hermione were the smartest students in their year, and Draco was a stupid Quidditch jock.

Draco said, "I didn't talk to Diggory's brother. I was kind of distracted by trying to find a way to save you two from the merpeople with big spears. What's special about him?"

"'Special' isn't the word I'd use," Harry said. He waved at the door to add extra privacy wards, then he said in a low voice, "He's a squib. Father is looking into the engagement contract to see whether this violates it."

Woah. The upright, honest Diggory family had squibs in the family? And they thought they would hide that fact from the Malfoys until after the engagement contract had been signed? Were they being clever or did they have a death-wish? Squibs suggested magical instability and weakness in the family lines. The Malfoys would never agree to a marriage to a magically tainted partner.

Hermione didn't understand the immensity of the revelation. "Is this another old blood purity prejudice?" she asked. "I thought squibs were accepted as part of the wizarding world."

There should be a book to give to muggle-borns to tell them the obvious facts of wizarding life. Draco would look for one to give to Hermione for her next birthday. Harry had less patience than usual about explaining wizarding society to his ignorant friend.

Harry said, "Where are the squib classes at Hogwarts? Our world is magical, and squibs are not part of our world. They have family ties, they visit, and maybe they'll have a few wizarding photos and an enchanted refrigerator that never needs to be defrosted and other trivial nonsense, but they live in the muggle world."

Hermione was a sucker for minority rights, and she would probably argue for more squib rights in their world, and she would be wrong. What could a squib do in the wizarding world? Sweep sidewalks? Wash windows? Spells could do that better. Hermione looked like she wanted to say something to defend squibs, but she couldn't immediately think of a good argument, so she settled with frowning and looking vaguely outraged.

There were no questions, comments, or criticisms from Hermione or Draco, so Harry continued. "Duncan Diggory goes to an exclusive _muggle_ boarding school. He plans on going to _muggle_ university. Isn't that fantastic? He's going to be the _mugglest__muggle_ in all of _muggledom_, and he will be my brother-in-law."

Harry could make the word 'muggle' sound as dirty as any curse word. He also had the amazing ability to forget how much Hermione hated to hear the muggle world insulted. Draco wondered whether he should hide before the argument really got started.

Hermione went on the attack. "If you hate muggles so much, why don't you go sign up with the Dark Lord and get rid of all the muggle trash? You can follow in your father's footsteps."

No, please, don't bring Lucius Malfoy into the argument. But Draco didn't say anything. They wouldn't listen to him when they were in this state. Harry was too angry about the Diggorys' lies, and Hermione was angry at Harry for his horrible anti-muggle prejudice. Draco watched and waited to counter whatever accidental magic Harry would release.

Harry glared at Hermione and said, "Don't speak like that about my father."

"He was a Death Eater. That's a fact. He's told you all sorts of anti-muggle rubbish since you were a kid. That's a fact, too. There is nothing wrong with living in the muggle world."

The lights flickered, but Harry was overall doing a good job of controlling his magic and not murdering Hermione. "You don't know what you are talking about."

"I know more about muggles than what you've learned in your Muggle Studies class. Your mother's parents were muggles! You already have muggles in your family. Who cares if your brother-in-law lives like one?"

It would be safer for Draco to explain the problem before Harry blew something up. "Harry has to worry about his kids. If the Malfoy heir is a squib, very bad things would happen. It would probably be the end of the world as we know it."

"Kids?" she repeated. "Harry and Cedric can have kids? Biologically?" She looked thoroughly confused and shocked by the idea of Harry and Cedric reproducing. Draco didn't like the idea, either, but he didn't see why she looked so surprised. Who would inherit the Malfoy fortune if Harry didn't have a kid?

"What's wrong with us having kids?" Harry asked. He didn't sound angry or offended now. He was just as curious as Draco was about Hermione's reaction. "We'll name them after our great-grandparents and spoil them rotten. That's the proper wizarding childhood."

Hermione said, "I didn't know two male wizards could have kids."

The fight about Harry's anti-muggle prejudice was over for the present. Hermione had been defeated by her fatal weakness for knowledge. Now she wanted to know how two male wizards could have babies.

"Expensive potions and a highly paid surrogate mother," Harry said. "If the engagement contract stands, Father says we'll ask Professor Snape about combining the pregnancy potions with magical screening potions. This wasn't supposed to happen with the Diggorys. They were supposed to be easy to handle. They need our money."

Now that everything concerned Harry's unborn children, Hermione was more sympathetic. "It was very wrong of them to lie," she conceded.

"Didn't your father research their family tree?" Draco asked. That was standard practice before signing magically binding engagement contracts. The Malfoys would look for magical creatures, less-than-pureblood wizards, and, of course, squibs.

"Father received the full genealogy of Cedric's ancestors. He did not ask about the current generation because Cedric was supposed to be an only child. The Diggorys had to know we would find out eventually."

Harry sat down on the bed between Draco and Hermione. Hermione hugged Harry, and then Draco did, too. Harry was still very tense and unhappy. He said, "Dumbledore knew about Duncan. He picked the hostages for the Hogwarts champions. He wanted to embarrass my family."

Maybe the Headmaster was doing his part to end Harry and Cedric Diggory's ridiculous engagement. Draco always liked Professor Dumbledore. He was a great and wise man. Draco would get him a really, really good Christmas present next year if this did lead to the engagement contract being broken.

Draco tussled Harry's hair and said, "You should get rid of your fiancé and find a new Light guy who is reasonably powerful and doesn't have any squibs in his family. Maybe someone who would miss you the most."

Harry laughed, finally not looking quite so miserable, and checked that his hair had magically straightened itself. He really did have the best hair in the school.

"This is a serious discussion, Draco. Stop being silly," Hermione chided, but she was happy to see that Harry was laughing and then she laughed, too.

Now that they were no longer yelling at each other, Harry and Hermione started to have a long, technical discussion of how same-sex pregnancies work. Draco stretched out on Harry's bed and half-listened to their voices. He thought of the second task, Mr. Malfoy giving him the fresh gillyweed, and carrying Harry and the little Delacour girl through the lake. It had been a busy day. He didn't realize that he had fallen asleep until he was woken up by loud knocking on the door. Harry took down the privacy wards and locking spells, and Neville Longbottom came in.

Neville looked at the three friends on the bed and saw the lack of damage to the room, and he was visibly relieved that the crisis, whatever it was, had passed. He said, "Harry, you have a visitor. Cedric Diggory."

Draco groaned. "Tell him to come back tomorrow. I'm tired and I want to sleep."

Harry told Neville to send Diggory in. Hermione and Draco didn't get up, and Harry didn't tell them to. All three of them wanted to yell at Cedric Diggory for being a liar.

The poor Hufflepuff knew he was in trouble. He was foolish to have tried to hide anything from the Malfoys. He should have been glad that Harry didn't use him for Legilimency practice in December. Cedric came in very cautiously and said, "Harry, I think we should talk."

This was a situation where the ice-cold Malfoy stare was appropriate. Harry gave his fiancé that special, scary look, and Cedric stepped back towards the door. Harry said, "Then let's talk."

"This conversation has to be in front of them?"

"Yes," said Harry, Hermione, and Draco. Draco sat up on the bed so he could have a better view of Cedric Diggory pleading for mercy and forgiveness from the Malfoy family. He hoped Harry would be really nasty. He loved it when Harry was mean.

Cedric sighed and began to grovel: "I'm sorry. I didn't want to keep my brother a secret, but my parents made a decision when Duncan was born to keep him away from the wizarding world. He knows about magic and Hogwarts and everything, but he knows this isn't his world."

"Then what was he doing here today?" Draco asked.

"The Headmaster thought that there had been too many lies."

O wise Professor Dumbledore, please meddle more in students' personal lives.

"I told you so," Harry said to Draco and Hermione. "The Headmaster wanted to embarrass the Malfoy family."

Cedric probably didn't even know about the Malfoys' dislike of the Headmaster. He looked surprised by Harry's reaction, but he was smart enough not to ask questions. He said, "I know your father isn't happy, but the contract has been signed and we have to live with it. I'd understand if you decided to break the engagement—"

"Impossible," Harry interrupted. "My family honors its obligations."

Draco was surprised that Cedric looked genuinely pleased to hear that. He must really want those three-and-a-half million galleons for his family. He couldn't possibly, truly want to marry Harry. He didn't even know the real Harry Malfoy.

Cedric said, "Then I guess we get through this and go on. Maybe we can stop lying to each other, at least a little bit. We are going to be together for at least a hundred years."

Hermione looked like she wanted to ask a question about wizard life-spans, but she actually manage to keep quiet. Draco wanted to make a joke about how Cedric Diggory would finally be free to show them his dark side, but he also knew it wasn't the right time. Harry had to decide whether to accept Diggory's apology.

"I doubt that we'll have one hundred years," Harry said. "Most Malfoys are killed in battle or assassinated before they live that long." He still didn't get up from his bed, but he smiled shyly in Diggory's general direction, and they all knew that Cedric Diggory was forgiven.

"Then we'll have to be careful," Cedric said, and it was almost kind of romantic, as much as it pained Draco to admit it.

Hopefully Lucius Malfoy's lawyers would declare the engagement contract had been broken by the Diggory family's outrageous lies. Mr. Malfoy wouldn't want Harry to marry Cedric Diggory now, and Mr. Malfoy always got what he wanted, no matter what contracts had been signed.


	10. Hogwarts Year 4, pt 4

Chapter 10 – Hogwarts Year 4, part 4

Draco had had the same vision of a creepy graveyard at least once a week since November. Professor Trelawney said that reoccurring visions were "definitely significant", but she didn't know any better than he did about why this one was so important. The graveyard was empty and the gravestones were old, dirty, and neglected. It didn't even seem to be a wizard cemetery. There were no ghosts, no talking statues, and no visitors.

Then the week before the third task, the vision changed. The vision came when Draco was using a standard crystal ball in Divination class. It was in sharper focus, and Draco could see a dark, run-down mansion behind the graveyard and the name on one of the biggest gravestones: Riddle.

Draco still didn't understand what the vision meant, but everything related to Tom Riddle/Lord Voldemort was bad, and he had to tell Harry at once. Hermione was sitting next to him, writing her 'vision' of Harry being run over by a truck for their afternoon assignment. "Where is Harry?" he asked her.

"Arthimancy and Ancient Runes," she said. "You don't come in during Ancient Runes, so go to Arthimancy." Harry and Hermione were better at using their time-turners than they were last year, but they still confused Draco a lot about which classes they attend in which order.

"I have a better idea. Can you tell Harry at …" Draco looked at the classroom clock, "…2:08 in Arthimancy that I am having a very important vision in Divination and he should come and hear about it so we can decide whether to tell his father."

"OK," Hermione said. There was a loud knock at the trap door to the Divination room, and Harry-from-Arthimancy came in. Sometimes time-turners could be useful.

Harry nodded in Professor Trelawney's direction, and she pretended not to be surprised by his sudden appearance. She told Lavender Brown that she had Seen that Harry Malfoy would here to consult with his friends before suffering his tragic death later that evening. Hermione still complained that Professor Trelawney was a fraud, but Draco appreciated her as a great showman.

"What happened?" Harry asked as he sat down on a fluffy cushion next to Draco. "Hermione said that you wanted me to come now. I sent an owl to my father to meet us here."

"Why did you do that?" Draco asked.

"Because Hermione told me to."

Lucius Malfoy made his grand entrance through a door that Draco had never noticed before. Of course, Mr. Malfoy was too dignified to use the trap door like everyone else. He was followed by a short, young wizard in shabby gray Ministry Seer robes. The Seer did not look like the sort of important Ministry of Magic official that Mr. Malfoy would know; he had long dreadlocks and a straggly goatee, and he wore blue-tinted John-Lennon-style glasses, wooden beads around his neck, and woven sandals. He smiled at everyone now staring at him, and he said grandly: "Peace be with you, friends."

"Did Hermione tell you to ask your father to bring along a weirdo hippie Seer?" Draco asked Harry. The weirdo hippie Seer heard that and smiled in an even more maniacal way. Draco had the dreadful premonition that he was going to see a lot of this new guy.

Mr. Malfoy looked atypically excited about his visit to the fourth-year Divination class. He greeted Professor Trelawney nearly respectfully and he allowed her to pretend to know what he was doing there, and then he asked for the Westphalian crystal ball amplifier and projector. Draco was as curious as Professor Trelawney was about what was going on. The weirdo hippie Seer picked out the devices he wanted from Professor Trelawney's dusty collection. Mr. Malfoy beckoned for Harry, Hermione, and Draco to follow, and he led them through the never-used door to a small, unused classroom.

"Hey, Draco, help me set this up," the hippie Seer said. "You're going to have to get used to using things like this." He was rude, his hair smelled, his clothes under his robes looked like they were in even worse condition than his Ministry outer robe, and he was going to be Draco's Divination mentor. Draco knew it, and the Seer knew that he knew it, too. Life sucked sometimes.

"This is Irwin Jones," Mr. Malfoy said. "The Minister of Magic said that he was the best of the Ministry's Divination team. He appeared when I got Harry's owl and said that he would assist us."

Irwin told Draco the names of everything as he put them in place, and Draco didn't remember a single one of the names. He did what the Seer told him to do, and everything was soon ready.

"Draco, you sit at the head of the table, Lord Malfoy to the right" (the Malfoys did not use any of their noble titles and Lucius Malfoy would never be addressed as 'Lord'), "Miss Granger next to Lord Malfoy, then me at the foot of the table, and the Boy Who Lived on Draco's left." Irwin seemed to enjoy being able to call people whatever he wanted. No one complained. They obediently took the seat Irwin designated.

Draco asked, "Now what?"

Irwin waved his hand impatiently. "See, envision, prophesy, divine us something. Let's see your raw technique."

"But I don't know how to use all this special equipment," Draco protested. Five minutes ago, he didn't even know that it was possible to project visions to people without any natural skill in Divination. Irwin didn't give him any helpful hints – some teacher he was going to be – so Draco began.

The large crystal ball in front of them became unfogged and Draco saw the creepy graveyard, as he had just seen it in class. The others around the table also looked into the ball and saw it, too. Cool, all the special equipment worked. Draco focused on the big, dirty tombstone and the crystal ball showed the inscription to everyone.

"It's the Riddle family plot in Little Hangleton. I've seen it," Mr. Malfoy said. "What else do you see, Draco?"

"Nothing, sir," Draco said, and Irwin scoffed very loudly and theatrically.

"You're not trying hard enough," Irwin said. "What's your mantra?"

"What's a mantra?"

"Your focal image? Your escape route?"

"None, nothing, I don't know," Draco said. "We haven't gotten that far in Divination class. Sorry." Irwin Jones must think he was an idiot. Draco should have read the Divination textbooks and tried to actually learn the subject properly instead of just relying on his natural Seer talents. The vision faded as Draco thought more about his failure, especially in front of Harry and Mr. Malfoy.

Irwin knew what was happening, and he quickly said, "You need proper training, but you must be very, very good to get anything at all." He was a clever Seer; how did he know that Draco could be completely won over by any praise, no matter how faint? Irwin said some soft incantation and the vision's lighting was better, but it was still fading. He said, "Draco, think of the letter A and summon the vision again. Put your left hand on the table. Sit up straight. Cross your ankles under the table. Stop straightening your glasses and keep your left hand on the table like I told you. Breathe through your nose. Are you thinking of the letter A? I can tell that you aren't. Concentrate. Aaaaaaaaaay."

Draco followed all the instructions as well as he could, and the vision came back, brighter and crisper. There was now a huge black cauldron in the graveyard. Someone was making a potion in a bathtub-sized cauldron in a graveyard in the Riddle family plot. What else? Draco thought of the letter A and breathed through his nose and kept his left hand on the table and there were about a dozen men in black cloaks in the graveyard forming a big circle around the cauldron.

"Death Eaters," Harry said in a low voice. "Mr. Crabbe, Mr. Goyle—"

"We see them," Mr. Malfoy said sharply. "Draco, show us more. What is inside the cauldron. When is this happening?"

Irwin said, "Keep your ankles crossed and tap your right foot. You're doing good, kid, doing good."

But it was over. Just as the vision was fading, a new person appeared: Peter Pettigrew. He was also wearing a black cloak, but his hood was down and his face was clearly exposed. He looked like he needed a good shave and a bath, and he looked very happy.

Draco said, "That can't be right, can it? Did I do something wrong, Mr. Jones? I think I was tapping my left foot, not my right. Sorry."

Mr. Malfoy said, "Jones, do a reading for Peter Pettigrew. He should be in Albania."

"Let Draco," Irwin said. He was smiling as if everything was going perfectly well. There were _Death Eaters_ in Draco's vision, including a man who had threatened to kill Draco. It was scary.

Draco concentrated on Peter Pettigrew and summoned a vision of his current state. The crystal ball went black. It had never done that before. Did he do something wrong?

"His position is blocked," Irwin explained. "That's powerful magic."

Draco tried to summon a vision of Aunt Bella and it was all black, too. "Aunt Bella is with him, isn't she?" he asked. Mr. Malfoy was supposed to be looking after Mr. Pettigrew and Bellatrix Lestrange. He wasn't supposed to let them join the other ex-Death Eaters to do strange rituals in Little Hangleton.

Mr. Malfoy was angry, but he was not going to share his concerns with the people present. Mr. Pettigrew must have double-crossed him. Mr. Pettigrew was so dead, and Draco didn't feel sorry for him at all.

"Jones, you will meet with Draco every evening until we understand what his vision means. This is very, very important. Harry will keep me informed of your progress. And thank you, Ms. Granger, for relaying the message to Harry to send for me." Mr. Malfoy got up, and Harry immediately went after his father to say good-bye.

Irwin disassembled the Divination equipment and named all the component again for Draco. Hermione asked questions that he didn't bother to answer.

"You have no Divination ability," he told her. "Don't waste your time. None of this would work for you. Here's a word of advice: stop taking Divination class before you take your OWLs. It's helping your class rank now, but do you think the outside examiners will want to hear about Harry Malfoy's death?"

Maybe Irwin wouldn't be such a terrible teacher after all. Hermione whispered to Draco, "He's _good_," and Irwin smiled more.

"First lesson tomorrow," Irwin told Draco. "You will know the time and place when it is time for you to know. Consider it your first test."

At dinner, Harry told Victor and Cedric about Draco's vision. Once it was clear that Lucius Malfoy was not going to break the engagement between Harry and Cedric after the second task, Harry and Cedric's relationship had changed. It actually became a relationship, much to Draco's extreme annoyance. Cedric Diggory was more than the-bloke-Harry-had-to-marry; he was now Harry's_ boyfriend_. And so he often sat with the Gryffindors during meals and let the Weasley twins play pranks on him and let the little Gryffindor girls sigh over how handsome he was. Everyone adored him.

"Could you identify any of the Death Eaters?" Cedric asked, showing all the worry, concern, and sympathy that Harry would want his loyal boyfriend to feel.

"They wore masks," Harry said, perhaps a bit too quickly. There were still topics that were off-limits with Cedric. The Malfoys were working against the return of Voldemort, but they still had close ties to the former Death Eaters that they did not want to be public.

"What does it mean that Draco has been having this vision over and over again since November and none of the Ministry Seers have had anything like it?" Cedric asked. "Is Draco going to have to go to Little Hangleton and face all the Death Eaters in the cemetery?"

Draco's visions from last year were warnings about attacks on Harry, but he wasn't going to think about that. He wasn't going to Little Hangleton, and neither would Harry. Mr. Malfoy would find and kill Peter Pettigrew, and Draco's vision would go away.

"Thanks for that happy thought, Cedric," Draco said, and he hoped he didn't sound as scared as he felt. Turn it into a joke. That's how he dealt with everything that scared or confused him. "I'm staying far away from all cemeteries now. Where is Little Hangleton? Maybe Essex. I hate Essex. I bet the Dark Lord is from Essex. What do you think?"

When Draco was unhappy, Harry was unhappy, and when Harry was unhappy, Cedric would notice, and then he'd try to cheer them up because he was a good boyfriend. Cedric considered the question of the Dark Lord's home county, and he said, "I'd guess he's Welsh. Lord Volde-Llewellyn-mort of Aberystwyth and his loyal Death Sheep."

Another thing about Cedric Diggory that annoyed Draco: he could make Draco laugh, no matter how much Draco didn't want to. Death Sheep! That was brilliant. For the rest of dinner, Draco and Cedric did impressions of the Death Sheep (_'Baa baa, Crucio! Baaaa…'_) and Harry laughed. Hermione tried to turn the conversation back to the scary vision, and Draco put her under sheep-imperio and Cedric asked her about something in her favorite book, _Hogwarts, a History_, and then she was happy, too. Draco would never admit it, but Cedric Diggory was the most likeable person on the planet.

That night Draco dreamed that a man in Death Eater robes killed Cedric in the creepy graveyard from his vision. It was a terrible dream, and it proved that Draco was a terrible person. Why couldn't he just let Harry be happy with Cedric? He wouldn't tell anyone about Cedric dying. It was just a stupid dream. It didn't mean anything.

* * *

It was the very end of the third task. The trophy was in front of Draco and Cedric in the center of the big Labyrinth of Death. They were both bleeding, limping, and breathing heavily, and they were smiling because the ordeal was over and they had won.

Draco said, "I got here first, before I went back to help you with that giant spider. That means I won."

"We're both here now. We tied."

"_Now_ we're tied, but I still won and I'm going to tell Harry and all your kids and grandkids. They'll all know that Uncle Draco won the Tri-Wizard tournament and not you."

"But then I tricked you into helping me and not taking the trophy yourself. The spider was all part of my plan. Why aren't we ending this yet?"

"I don't know, but I don't think we should touch the trophy now. There's something wrong with it."

"Did you have another vision?"

"It's instinct. I have excellent instincts."

"So your plan is that we stand here and wait until your instincts let us take the trophy? And we hope that all the monsters in the maze won't find us?"

"I forgot about the monsters. Good point. You've convinced me. On the count of three. One… two..." They both grabbed the trophy and then felt the pull of a port-key. Draco knew it was a bad idea to touch it.

* * *

Fuck fuck fuck fuck. They were in Little Hangleton with the creepy graveyard and the weird big black cauldron. It was all like Draco's vision, except without the Death Eaters. They were probably on their way.

"Can you apparate?" Draco asked Cedric. "We need to get out of here now!"

Cedric nodded and took Draco's hand to do a side-along apparation. It would be risky to apparate without knowing where they were or where they were going, but it was better than staying in the graveyard and waiting for Peter Pettigrew. Before Cedric could begin the spell, they were both petrified from behind and fell to the ground.

Draco couldn't see his attacker, but he knew it had to be Mr. Pettigrew being evil again. He said, "I can't see you, Mr. Pettigrew, but I know it's you and I know we're in Little Hangleton. Lucius Malfoy knows, too, and he's going to come and save us if you don't let us go now." That was wishful thinking, but Draco was willing to say anything if it would make him seem less defenseless.

A thin, hissing voice said, "Is that little Draco Potter all grown up?" Draco had heard that voice before, back in his first year, when Voldemort was on the back of Professor Quirrell's head. Voldemort was back! Was he on Mr. Pettigrew's head now?

Draco said, "I know your voice, Tom. We defeated you before, and we'll fight you again, unless you let us go."

"He's louder than I remember," Voldemort hissed. "Get on with it, Wormtail. Kill the spare."

Spare what? Oh Merlin, Cedric! "Not Cedric!" Draco yelled. "If you kill him, bad things will happen. The Malfoys would never forgive you. They hate Professor Dumbledore, you know, and they really hate muggles. They may go over to your side, if you let us go. Cedric is going to marry Harry. Don't kill him!"

"Shall I silence him, my Lord?" Mr. Pettigrew asked.

"Yes," Voldemort said. "But leave the other boy, in case Draco is telling the truth. He could be useful."

Draco tried to say something more about how Voldemort should let them go, but the silencing spell had been cast and he was still petrified. He was totally helpless. He really, really hoped that Mr. Malfoy would remember Draco's vision and come and save the day. Otherwise, Draco and Cedric were dead.

Whatever was in the cauldron smelled very, very foul. Mr. Pettigrew picked Draco up and dragged him over to the big tombstone that Draco had seen many times in his visions. Mr. Pettigrew used a spell to tie Draco to the Riddle tombstone with ropes. That didn't seem super-necessary since Draco was petrified, but Draco couldn't comment because he was still silenced.

From his new viewpoint, he looked around the graveyard for Voldemort and didn't see him. Mr. Pettigrew looked scruffier and dirtier than he used to be, but he did not have any extra faces on his head or unusual headwear like Professor Quirrell. There was a pile of black robes aside the cauldron that seemed to move a bit, but that couldn't possibly be the Dark Lord. He'd have to be tiny and puny to hide in the robes. Maybe Voldemort had an invisibility cloak.

"Get on with it," Voldemort hissed, and the voice did come from the robes. How weird. Then Mr. Pettigrew picked up the pile of robes and Draco could see the baby-sized hairless, gray, scaly, disgusting creature that Voldemort was now. Fuck. What was wrong with him? Why couldn't he die like a normal person? Mr. Pettigrew gently put him/it into the cauldron, and the freaky ritual began.

Bone from the father, flesh from the servant, blood from the enemy. Unfortunately Draco was the enemy. Mr. Pettigrew slashed Draco's arm with a jagged knife and collected drops of his blood on the blade. Then something happened in the cauldron, and a full-grown Lord Voldemort climbed out. Fuck fuck fuck. Where was Mr. Malfoy? Professor Dumbledore? Harry? Anyone?

Voldemort was more-or-less human again. He didn't have a nose, his skin was gray and scaly, and his eyes were bright red, but he was definitely alive and dangerous.

"Welcome back, my Lord," Mr. Pettigrew said with heartfelt pride and joy in his voice. How did he hide that he was a psycho, loyal Death Eater for so long? Voldemort summoned his most loyal Death Eaters using Mr. Pettigrew's Dark mark, and Draco tried very hard to move his toes. He needed to escape _now_. Cedric still hadn't made a sound from where he had been left. Hopefully Voldemort would be so happy to have a real body and to see his old friends again that he'd forget about Draco and Cedric and let them live. And maybe Voldemort would tell everyone he loved muggles and dance a gig.

There were **pops **around the graveyard as fully-costumed Death Eaters apparated in. Harry would have been able to say who they were, but Draco had no clue who they were and he didn't want to hang around long enough to get to know them. No one said anything about Voldemort's miraculous return, until Aunt Bella came.

"My Lord! I knew you would come! The Rat doubted, the Malfoy Snake said it was impossible, the doctors tried to give me drugs to silence me, but I knew! You will rescue my husband from that horrible place." In her enthusiasm, she came too close to Voldemort, and he hexed her with something terrible that made her look ecstatic.

"Bellatrix, I remember you well. Still mad, I see," Voldemort said in his new lower hissy voice. "Your nephew is going to be killed now. I apologize for the attack on your family, but he is my enemy and he must be sacrificed."

"As you wish, my Lord." Aunt Bella curtsied and took her place among the other Death Eaters. That's all she could say about her only nephew being 'sacrificed'? She was the worst aunt on the planet.

Draco hoped that Voldemort would wait for many more people, but he seemed satisfied with the dozen Death Eaters who were there. And so the Death Eater reunion began. He insulted them, he yelled at them for not being very faithful or loyal after his supposed death, and he cast Crucio on a few of them. If all Death Eater meetings were like that, Draco didn't know why Voldemort had any followers at all.

Unfortunately Voldemort had not forgotten his lovely prisoners. After he gave Mr. Pettigrew a new shiny, metallic hand, he turned to face Draco on the tombstone. "I will miss having you as an enemy, Draco Potter. I requested your presence here tonight, and my true followers have delivered you to me. Your death will be a great loss to my most powerful enemies. Your parents, Albus Dumbledore, the Malfoy family – I stole you in front of them all. And, of course, there is the prophecy. One of us is destined to kill the other. Who do you think will be the victim, Draco?"

Draco hadn't thought about that old prophecy for years. No one believed that he was the chosen one who would defeat Voldemort. He didn't believe it, either. He wasn't powerful enough. Now, unless help arrived really, really soon, the prophecy would be fulfilled by Voldemort killing Draco.

"Shall we duel, Mr. Potter?" Voldemort bowed with mock formality, and the ropes holding Draco against the tombstone came undone and Draco fell to the ground. He was no longer petrified, and he cleared his throat and was glad that he was no longer silenced. He didn't know how to do nonverbal spells. He was still doomed, but he had his wand and he was no longer physically restrained. He needed a diversion –

There were **pops** everywhere, and Draco ran to Cedric.

"Lllluuuuciusssss," Voldemort crooned evilly. "I knew you would be unable to refuse my call."

Draco cast 'Finite' and unpetrified Cedric. He helped Cedric get up and he looked for the trophy/port-key back to Hogwarts. He summoned it.

"No matter how many times my son kills you, you keep on returning and trying again. When will you give up?" Lucius Malfoy said. It was easy to sound cocky when you are surrounded by about fifty well-armed minions. He should have known better than to taunt the most evil wizard in the world, especially when there were two defenseless, innocent boys near by and trying desperately to escape.

"Speaking of your son," Voldemort began, then spun around and cast a very powerful _Avada Kedavra _at Draco and Cedric. Draco threw himself onto the ground as soon as he realized what was happening. Cedric fell down on top of him, just as the trophy/port-key was activated to bring them back to Hogwarts.

They appeared in front of the stands for the Tri-Wizard tournament. Draco was crying, and Cedric was dead.

* * *

Harry was excused from Hogwarts for the remainder of the year. Mr. Malfoy had arrived at Hogwarts about a half hour after Draco and Cedric returned. Harry had spent that half hour with Draco in the infirmary, asking about what Draco had seen in the graveyard. Draco told him everything, and they let Professor Dumbledore, Professor Snape, and Draco's parents listen, too. But then Harry went away with his father and Draco was alone, and he had to tell something to the other Gryffindors and Hufflepuffs who wanted to know what happened to everyone's best friend, Cedric Diggory.

There were strange side-effects from the resurrection ritual for Draco Potter. He had a lightning-bolt-shaped scar on his arm where Mr. Pettigrew had drawn his blood, and he had vague but vivid dreams about the Dark Lord almost every night. Drops of Draco's blood were now part of Voldemort's body. They had a connection, and Draco didn't like it at all.

The 'Daily Prophet' published a detailed account of Voldemort's resurrection on the front page, complete with the names of the Death Eaters who had been present. The 'Daily Prophet' proclaimed its support of the Malfoy family and their honorable fight against the Dark Lord.

* * *

(Thanks for your reviews. They make me smile.) 


	11. Hogwarts Year 5, pt 1

Chapter 11 – Hogwarts Year 5, pt 1

"Voldy is a heck of a lot earlier to handle this time than last time he tried to take over the world," Sirius Black said during dinner at Godric's Hollow. "We just sit here and wait while Voldy's loyal Death Eaters and Lucius Malfoy's Death Eater renegades kill each other. When they're done, we'll swoop in and capture the survivors."

James Potter laughed and Narcissa did not. "Excellent idea," she said. "Lucius Malfoy is arrogant enough to think that he can defeat the Dark Lord by himself this time. Let him try. We won't have to risk the lives of anyone whom we'd miss."

Draco didn't like Lucius Malfoy very much, but he didn't want Lucius Malfoy to die. "Harry and Mrs. Malfoy would miss him," he said.

"Even better," Uncle Sirius said. "Voldy kills Lucius, then Harry goes after Voldy for revenge and kills the bastard again. The end." He was somewhat drunk, otherwise Draco would have yelled at him for suggesting that Draco's best friend should face the most evil dark wizard ever by himself. Harry had already done that several times, and it hadn't been much fun.

But then Draco's world went hazy and – **bam!** – he was looking out the Dark Lord's eyes. It really sucked to share a strong psychic connection with Lord Voldemort. It wasn't only seeing what the Dark Lord was seeing. Draco _was_ Lord Voldemort. He could feel the man's clothes hanging on his scaly body, the cool air of the dungeon where he was hiding, the hard stone throne he sat on, and hear the voices around him including his own voice, now low and hissing.

"We must lure Llllluuuucius away from Malfoy Manor," Draco-as-Voldemort said. "Our direct attacks on his headquarters are weakened by the ancient wards. Has his boy been found?"

"He has been removed from Malfoy Manor, my Lord," a stout, black-hooded Death Eater said.

"I know that, fool. That is why we are looking for him." Draco-as-Voldemort cast a Dark spell on the man that made him jump back as if from an electric shock. Draco-as-Voldemort was pleased.

"His mudblood wife, she has appeared in public," Draco continued. "She must be shadowed. She would be too difficult to capture, but she could lead us to the boy. If we had his boy, Lllllucius would give up his foolish fight. He will submit himself and his family to my rule."

Another Death Eater came into the dungeons, and Draco recognized him as Professor Snape. Draco knew that Snape used to be a Death Eater and spy for Professor Dumbledore, like Lucius Malfoy during the First War, but he didn't know that Snape had returned to Voldemort's service.

"My lord, I have come as you requested," Snape said and bowed low to Draco. "Dumbledore does not know where Harry Malfoy is hidden. He suspects that Harry must be in one of the Malfoys' ancestral homes. Blood magic would keep him completely hidden and protected from everyone who means him harm. I have compiled a list of all the Malfoy family properties. There are many."

Draco-as-Voldemort was pleased that they finally had made some progress on their search. Snape was always one of his smartest followers. Draco-as-Draco wanted out of Voldemort's head so he could ask his parents whether Snape was acting as a double agent again. If he wasn't, Draco wanted him thrown into Azkaban for being an evil, double-crossing Death Eater.

The world went hazy again, and Draco was lying on the floor next to the dining table in Godric's Hollow. His mother was crouched next to him and held a damp cloth on his forehead. His parents were used to Draco's inconvenient out-of-body experiences. He would pass out for a minute or two, then he'd wake up and they would owl Professor Dumbledore about everything that Draco had seen.

"Sorry for ruining dinner, Mum," Draco said. "Snape is helping Voldemort find where Harry is hidden. Is Snape on our side?"

"Depends on who you ask," Uncle Sirius said, which meant that Sirius didn't trust Snape at all, but the Headmaster did.

Professor Dumbledore was almost certain that Voldemort would not be able to use their connection to intrude into Draco's mind. Draco had his special Seer powers, whereas young Tom Riddle did not take Divination at Hogwarts. Professor Snape, everyone's favorite double- or maybe triple-agent, was equally certain that Lord Voldemort would be able to easily intrude into Draco's head if he knew about their connection. In addition to his other evil talents, Voldemort was a master Legilimens. Draco's parents and their friends didn't like Snape, but they listened to him because he was usually right. Therefore, no one was allowed to say anything interesting in front of Draco until he learned Occlumency.

What a waste of his summer holidays. Draco wasn't allowed to leave Godric's Hollow alone, just in case he ended up lying unconscious in the middle of Diagon Alley. His mother thought that he should stop flying completely, but his father convinced her that Draco would be safe if an adult was on the ground watching him. That requirement meant that Draco could only fly one or two hours a day, not nearly enough! He had daily Divination lessons with his new official mentor Irwin Jones, and now he had Occlumency lessons with Professor Snape twice a week.

"Why Snape? He doesn't like me," Draco complained. "He's going to be awful."

"If you don't learn from him, you won't be able to fly by yourself and we'll never let you come to Sirius's house," his mother reminded him. Everyone was always going to important meetings at Sirius's house, but no one would even tell Draco which one of Sirius's houses they were meeting at, much less why. That was very, very annoying.

"Will I be able to see Harry, too?" Draco asked. The Malfoys knew about Draco's special connection to the Dark Lord, and they would not allow Draco to even read letters from Harry.

"You'll have to talk to Harry's mother," Mrs. Potter said. Just great. Harry's parents were very protective of their son. There was no way Draco would see him before September.

Draco cheated. He had to know how Harry was. After a Divination lesson, when the big crystal balls were still out and Irwin was talking to Draco's father, Draco did a reading for Harry. And there he was, wearing all-black robes instead of his usual Malfoy dress robes, reading a book in a small bedroom that was not in the Malfoy Manor. It was weird-looking. It was _muggle_. Then Draco ended the vision because he knew where Harry was. His awful aunt's house in Surrey. Harry must be miserable.

Occlumency lessons with Snape were even worse than expected. Snape hated Draco's parents and Draco's parents' friends. He didn't want to be there, but Professor Dumbledore made him come. Snape was rude to everyone, including the house elves, and during Draco's lessons he employed all his favorite teaching techniques: intimidation, cruelty, and ridicule.

"I don't want to see inside your tiny pea brain. It's all Quidditch, Quidditch, the horrifying death of Cedric Diggory, Quidditch, Quidditch, and Harry Malfoy in the bath. Try to defend yourself this time."

"Poor Cedric Diggory, again. Can we find a more interesting traumatic memory? The Dark Lord will want something that he hasn't already seen when he invades your mind."

"Surprise, surprise, naked Harry Malfoy. Try to conceal your adolescent desires, or else I'll tell Lucius Malfoy what a dirty little boy you are."

Draco didn't understand how the mind worked, but when he felt the prick of a Legilimency attack, he eventually learned how to limit what Snape saw. He messed up sometimes, and then Snape would find the memory, again, of Harry Malfoy naked and floating in the pool in prefects' bathroom when they were working on the egg for the Second Task last year.

"It is a very emotionally charged memory, very poorly concealed," Snape said. "It will be the first thing the Dark Lord finds when he attacks your mind."

But Snape never found the memory of Draco figuring out where Harry was hiding, and that meant that Draco was better at Occlumency than everyone thought. Draco's Divination lessons helped him learn how to sense the approach of visions, and by the middle of August he was able to block being sucked into Voldemort's head when he was awake.

To celebrate his success, he had a belated birthday party. Harry wasn't allowed to come, but he sent a present and a short letter that Draco was actually allowed to read.

"_Congratulations on your Occlumency. Father is disappointed that he won't be able to rely on your inside information about the Dark Lord anymore. He'll find other ways to get information on our enemies. Voldemort has been attacking Malfoy Manor at least twice a week for the last month, but Father says that he is still too weak to defeat us. After all, he couldn't even keep you out of his head._

"_I am in the worst place on the planet, but it's safe. Mum is here, and so is my beloved herbology tutor Kenneth. Poor Kenneth has a small garden shed instead of the Manor's greenhouses. Unfortunately that hasn't keep him from growing ugly weeds and getting me to haul fertilizer. Father says that after I pass the herbology O.W.L., I will be allowed to drop the course. _

"_This is another present that Father picked out for you. You may not like him, but you have to admit that he is the best at picking out presents. Don't forget to send him a thank-you note. I'll see you in September."_

A birthday fairy who would grant Draco one special birthday wish! That was the third coolest present Draco had ever gotten. (The coolest was still Tom Riddle's cursed diary, and the second coolest was his Firebolt.) Everyone at Draco's party was madly jealous and shouted unhelpful suggestions about what he should wish for.

"World peace!" said Hermione.

"Firebolt II," said Ron. "No, no, the Firebolt III!"

"The end to the pixie curse on the Potter family," said James Potter, thereby giving Draco the best idea in the world for his wish.

As every wizard knows, birthday fairies are lazy, wicked creatures who don't actually want to grant your wish. They take great delight in twisting your words and willfully misinterpreting what you meant in order to give you what you didn't expect. You must be very careful and very specific about what you ask for.

"I wish to be tall," Draco said. "And not just taller than Professor Flitwick or so freakishly tall that I'm taller than Hagrid. I want to be one inch taller than Ronald Weasley, this guy here, for as long as he lives. Then if I'm still alive, I want to stay however tall I am, even though he'd be decomposing in his grave somewhere."

And it was done. Awesome. Thank you, Lucius Malfoy.

* * *

Harry Malfoy was not on the train to Hogwarts in September. He had gone to Hogwarts a week early to take the exams he had missed after Cedric's death. The Headmaster was also concerned that Harry's presence would endanger the other students on the train, because Voldemort was still trying to kidnap Harry in order to have an advantage over Lucius Malfoy. Draco knew all that because he couldn't block visions in his sleep, and he had ordered the attack on the train himself and then canceled it when he heard that Harry would not be on it. 

Tall Draco Potter was a sensation as soon as he stepped onto Platform 9 ¾. His parents had to let him buy a completely new wardrobe since he had grown eight inches in one afternoon, and he had gone to the coolest Diagon Alley shops for his clothes. He was indie-sporty-hipster-grunge stylish, and his messy bed-head hair was _finally_ sexy. He looked good and he knew it, and he wanted everyone else to see, too.

"I wonder what Harry will say," Draco said to Ron as they walked down the train corridor together. Draco loved being taller than Ron.

Pansy Parkinson whistled when he walked by her compartment. "Looking good there, Potter! Did you send Harry Malfoy naked pictures as soon as you grew up?" She was an evil witch, and that's why Draco liked her. He pirouetted for her so she could appreciate his hotness from all angles.

"You are as bad as Ginny," Ron grumbled, and Draco wondered whether Ginny Weasley had turned wildly attractive, too. He would have to check her out. But then he was distracted by some seventh year Hufflepuff girls, whom he had never truly appreciated before. Ron went off to find Hermione, and Draco stayed to flirt.

Harry was waiting for them in the Great Hall. Instead of his school uniform, he was wearing heavy black robes and long black gloves. It must be part of some strange traditional wizarding mourning ritual. He must not have helped Kenneth in the gardens very much this summer, because he was very pale, and the black clothes made him look even more deathly white. He didn't look up from his book until Draco sat down next to him.

"Stand up again," he said, and Draco gladly did so.

"What do you think?" Draco said with a big smile. "I'm an inch taller than Ron, forever. All thanks to your dad."

"Good choice," Harry said. "I thought you'd correct your eyes."

Draco hadn't thought of that. He hated his thick, geeky glasses. He sat back down and said, "Tell your dad that I want that next year."

Harry waved at Draco and wordlessly, wandlessly corrected Draco's vision. "You don't want to spoil the look," he said. "Interesting things have been happening at school this week. Professor Moody is back as the DADA teacher. Father says that's impossible."

"Why? I thought he was kind of weird and he was always doing nasty things to you, like turning you into a ferret, but he wasn't any worse than Lockhart or Quirrell," Draco said.

Harry cast a privacy spell so only Draco could hear him and said, "The Dark Lord cursed the DADA position so that no one could have it for more than one year. Moody should be gone."

"He broke the curse?"

"Or the Dark Lord wants him here. Professor Snape says that he was never told who was Voldemort's spy at Hogwarts during the Tri-Wizard tournament. Father was always suspicious of Moody. Dumbledore won't get rid of him, though."

There was one problem with becoming super-hot. Draco wasn't left alone to hear secret, alarming news from Harry Malfoy during dinner. Ginny Weasley sat next to Draco and tapped him on the shoulder and asked him how it felt to finally have his heart's desire and be tall. Ron was right; Ginny had grown up a lot during the summer, and Draco was happy to tell her all about it. He had only thought of Ginny Weasley as a surrogate little sister for years, but now she was a cute redhead with a good figure, and that counted for a lot for a fifteen-year-old boy.

As a true Malfoy, Harry was surprised and then annoyed that he was being brushed off, but he was not going to fight with Ginny Weasley for Draco's attention. He turned his back and ignored Draco for the rest of the meal. He talked with Hermione about the exams he had just taken, and they started enthusiastically planning their revision schedule for their O.W.L.s. Draco listened and tried to join the conversation, even though it was about the most boring topic on the planet, but Harry did not like to be ignored, ever. Lesson learned.

On the way to Gryffindor Tower, Draco was asked out by the hottest guy in Slytherin, Blaise Zabini, and that made him feel better. He said no because Zabini was scary and, if rumors were to be believed, a total slut, but it was still good for his ego.

"Holding out for Malfoy?" Zabini asked with a salacious wink.

"You can tell Pansy that," Draco said, because that was the sort of thing she would say, too. The Slytherins loved to tease him about Harry. They were _just friends_. Really! Besides, Harry was going to have a political marriage to please his father, and Draco was going to fall in love, or something like that.

Back at Gryffindor Tower, Harry was willing to include Draco in their conversation about O.W.L.s and N.E.W.T.s, but that was still the most boring topic in the world. Instead, Draco talked with his Quidditch teammates about try-outs. He was the team captain, and he wanted them to start practicing immediately. They hadn't played as a team for over a year. Plus Draco had not been able to train as much over the summer as usual, and he wanted to get used to flying with his new and improved height.

"How long are you going to be wearing all that?" Draco asked that night while Harry was carefully taking off his black clothes.

"As long as I want," Harry said. "It's allowed in the school charter." That was the sort of short non-answer that Harry used when other people asked him questions he deemed too personal. That wasn't the way he spoke to Draco.

Draco could be just as proud and stubborn as Harry was. He was not going to let Harry ignore him again. "I'm just your best friend. You haven't said a word to me about Cedric. I still see him in my nightmares sometimes."

Neville, Dean, and Seamus were also in the room getting ready to go to bed. They were smart enough to know that they should go to bed and close their curtains as quickly as possible. Harry continued slowly changing into his pajamas, and Draco sat on Harry's bed and waited.

"You're not getting changed?" Harry asked.

"I want to talk to you first." In other words, Draco was not going to go away and let Harry sulk and sleep. Harry eventually set up privacy wards and sat down on the other side of his bed.

"What do you want to know? If I wear the black robes and the gloves, I know that no one will forget Cedric. I was supposed to spend one hundred years with him, and I kissed him only once. His family sent back the money from the engagement. This is the only thing I can give him now."

"His death wasn't your fault," Draco said. "Cedric knew the Tri-Wizard tournament was dangerous. I thought I'd be killed by a dragon in the first task. Cedric was much braver than I was. Then when Voldemort turned up, I thought I was totally dead. I was lucky, and Cedric wasn't."

"I don't know what I would do if you were killed. Father knows how important you are to me. Who knows how he caught that birthday fairy."

"I'm sure he paid someone."

"You don't know Father. His presents are personal."

Draco asked Harry about how he survived living with his aunt's muggle family in Surrey (answer: herbology tutor Kenneth kept Harry away from his awful cousin and his awful uncle), and Harry asked Draco about what it was like to be inside Voldemort's head (answer: freaky). Draco told Harry that he got propositioned by Blaise Zabini, and Harry congratulated him on that necessary Hogwarts rite of passage.

"You mean he tried with you, too?" Draco asked.

"I said no. And no. And no. And no."

Eventually they realized that it was very late. Harry kicked Draco out of his bed, and Draco went to sleep happy that he was tall and that he was no longer fighting with Harry.

* * *

Thanks for your reviews. 


	12. Hogwarts Year 5, pt 2

Chapter 12 – Hogwarts Year 5, pt 2

Draco-as-Voldemort was displeased. "What is the use of having two spies inside Hogwarts if neither will do what I order him to do? I told you to bring me Harry Malfoy. Where is he?" His two spies kneeled before him expecting punishment. One was Professor Snape, and the other was someone Draco-as-Draco had never seen before. He was a pale scrawny man with straw-blond hair.

"Harry Malfoy is protected inside the school," the unknown spy said. "He is always with his little friends. Dumbledore watches his every move."

"You are not answering my question, Crouch. Where is Harry Malfoy? Is he sleeping peacefully in his bed, safe and sound? Do you need Wormtail to draw you a map how to find Gryffindor tower?" Draco-as-Voldemort cast 'Crucio' on him, and lifted the curse after the spy cried out. He did not think highly of Crouch's abilities. It was unexpected that he had lasted so long in his position within Hogwarts. He would not last much longer.

"If I may speak, my lord," Snape said, very cautiously waiting to be given permission to continue. Draco nodded his head. Unlike most of his followers, Snape was not an idiot. He could be trusted to think for himself and fulfill his missions. "If Crouch and I could combine our efforts, we would be certain of success. You have not told me what his mission involves."

"We meet every day, Severus," Crouch said smugly. He was proud of a disguise that he did not create following a plan that he did not devise himself. If he was not uncovered as a spy, Draco-as-Voldemort may end up killing him anyway for being an annoying fool.

"I did not give you permission to reveal any details of your mission, Crouch," Draco hissed, and he was deciding which painful Dark hex to cast when Draco-as-Draco woke up and escaped.

It was his second night vision in the three weeks that they had been back at Hogwarts. Draco hated being Voldemort. It was three o'clock in the morning, and now he had to send an owl to the Headmaster about what he saw. But first he would tell Harry because it was all about him.

Voldemort was wrong about Harry sleeping peacefully in his bed in Gryffindor Tower. He was awake and reading a textbook when Draco peeked in his bed curtains. It was a bit late for revisions.

"How's the Dark Lord tonight?" Harry asked. He closed his book and made room on his bed so Draco could sit down and close the curtains. After his freaky visions, Draco liked company and security. Harry could always provide both.

Draco said, "The other spy at Hogwarts is a skinny blond bloke named Crouch. He was about thirty years old. Voldemort thinks he's an idiot and he's going to be caught soon. Do you know who he is?"

Harry nodded. "Barty Crouch Jr. He was sent to Azkaban for torturing Neville's parents. I heard he was found dead in his cell over a year ago. Is Professor Snape still with Voldemort? Did you curse him?"

Professor Snape and Harry's relationship was very different this year. Before Voldemort's return, they had been doting-favorite-teacher/adoring-favorite-student. Now they ignored each other as much as possible during potions class, and Harry no longer had private lessons with Snape for his theoretical herbology, magical control, Legilimency, and whatever else they used to do together. They were officially on different sides of the Death Eater conflict, and that meant they had to treat each other as enemies. As Harry said, it was just politics. In private, Harry still cared for Professor Snape as much as he cared for his other friends.

"I only cursed Crouch. Voldemort doesn't like him very much. Snape and Crouch are supposed to kidnap you and bring you back to Voldemort."

Harry accepted that news without any surprise. "We already knew the Dark Lord was after me. Father will find Crouch. If he's not connected with Professor Moody, he could be disguised as one of the younger students."

Draco hadn't thought of that. If Crouch had a good disguise, he could be anyone. Anyone at all… Instead of worrying about that, he borrowed a quill and parchment from Harry and wrote down the vision to send to Dumbledore, then fell asleep in Harry's bed while Harry continued revising for his transfiguration O.W.L.

Now that Professor Snape, Professor Dumbledore, and Lucius Malfoy knew the true identity of Voldemort's real spy within Hogwarts, they were going to use all their tricks to catch him. Out of the three, Lucius Malfoy had the best tricks: enormous influence within the Ministry of Magic and the willingness to by-pass the rules for an official investigation.

At breakfast the next day, Dumbledore announced that they had a visitor from the Ministry of Magic: the Senior Undersecretary to Minister Cornelius Fudge and acting High Inquisitor, Dolores Umbridge. She was there to make a full inspection of the school for the Ministry. She looked like an ugly, frumpy toad, and she wore an alarmingly pink cardigan over her robes. That was clearly a sign of a deeply disturbed mind. Harry clapped enthusiastically when she was introduced.

"She used to work for my father. He must have sent her to find Crouch," Harry told Draco and Hermione. "She is very tough and determined when she has a mission. She won't let the Headmaster manipulate her and tell her what to do, like the rest of the Ministry does. She's like a bulldog."

"She looks more like a toad," Draco said.

Hermione was also not an immediate fan of Madam Umbridge. "I've never heard of a High Inquisitor before. It sounds medieval. What does it mean?"

"It means whatever she decides it means," Harry said. "It's one of Father's titles, but he's busy fighting Voldemort. He must have given her the acting powers of High Inquisitor. Now everything will be all right."

Madam Umbridge sat next to Professor Moody and gave him a threatening glare. Lucius Malfoy thought that Moody had to be involved with the Death Eater activity in Hogwarts, and now Madam Umbridge was going to prove it, no matter who tried to get in her way.

At the end of breakfast and before the students left for their first class, Harry went to the teacher's table to properly welcome Madam Umbridge to Hogwarts. He bowed to her and said some appropriate pleasantries that made her giggle and bat her eyes in what would be a flirtatious way if she wasn't old and horrible. She loudly pronounced, "Oh, Harry, you are as charming as your father." Now everyone would know where her loyalty lies. She left the Great Hall arm-in-arm with Harry.

Hermione turned to Draco. "I don't like that woman. Lucius Malfoy is a nasty, evil man. If she likes him, she must be another prejudiced bigot."

"Professor Dumbledore will look after her," Draco said. He had grown up believing unconditionally in the power and wisdom of Albus Dumbledore, and the incidents with Quirrell, the Chamber of Secrets, Mr. Pettigrew, and even the Tri-Wizard tournament hadn't weakened his faith in the Headmaster. Lucius Malfoy had interfered with the running of the school in the past, and everything turned out all right in the end. What harm could Madam Umbridge do? "Harry says she'll help find Crouch. We want that, too. She looks like she'd do anything Harry told her to do."

Hermione was not won over by the sincerity of Draco's blind faith in Harry and the Headmaster. She was too smart to trust in the goodness of others. "I love Harry like a brother, but he can be a nasty, prejudiced bigot, too. If Madam Umbridge only listens to him, we could be in big trouble."

"Harry listens to us, and we're not bigots. We won't let them do anything bad. They'll find Crouch, and she'll go away."

The first class Madam Umbridge inspected was Defense Against the Dark Arts with their top suspect, Professor Moody. Harry was already sitting at their usual table when Draco came in. Harry was still happy about Madam Umbridge's visit.

"She says that she will stay at Hogwarts until we catch Crouch," he told Draco under a strong privacy bubble before class began. "She is going to 'inspect' the other professors, too, but she's almost certain that Moody is our spy. It's not going to be easy to prove it to Dumbledore, though. He refused to let my father interrogate Moody under Veritaserum. Why should Moody say no if he has nothing to hide? We need evidence."

Whether Professor Moody was really Barty Crouch Jr or not, he was going to have a rough time during Madam Umbridge's stay at Hogwarts. And so class began. Professor Moody didn't like or trust Madam High Inquisitor. His magical eye was twirling and swiveling in constant motion, and he never turned his back on her. He clearly expected her to jump out with her wand drawn and attack him. Draco couldn't decide whether that was incriminating behavior or only a sign of the ex-auror's normal extreme paranoia. She took many notes on her clipboard and seemed to disapprove of everything and everyone.

The first half was a lecture on a nasty Dark hex and how to block it and, if you got hit, how to end it. Then it was time for the practical demonstration. As always, Harry Malfoy was volunteered to come to the front of the room and have the spell cast at him.

"What are you doing?" Madam Umbridge screeched from the back of the classroom. "Are you mad? You cannot have a practical demonstration of that curse on Harry Malfoy in Hogwarts. That is illegal!"

That had been Draco's initial reaction when the practical demonstrations/duels began last year, but now he was used to seeing them and knew that Harry would be all right. The Malfoys had a well-known special affinity for Dark magic.

"It's all under control, Madam Umbridge," said Professor Moody. "Mr. Malfoy could teach us all a thing or two about Dark hexes. He learned them all at his father's knee as a little tyke."

"No one will curse that young man in my presence," she said, and her rule was law. She was the High Inquisitor, after all. Harry went back to his seat, and Professor Moody's magical eye spun faster. Madam Umbridge was pleased with her victory. Draco still didn't like her, but he didn't like watching those practical demonstrations with his DADA professor trying to kill his best friend. He was glad it had been avoided for a day.

Madam Umbridge's next inspection was in the afternoon's Divination class. Hermione was no longer in the class because of her complete lack of talent in the subject and, more importantly, the upcoming O.W.L. exams that would have exposed her complete lack of talent. Draco now worked with Lavender Brown because she was the prettiest girl there. She had long golden-blond hair, laughing dark eyes, and the best figure of all the Gryffindor girls. She was very appreciative of Draco's Seer's gift, and he was very appreciative of her sexy smiles and her thorough knowledge of school gossip.

"Chris Cadawallader, what do you think of him?" Lavender asked at the beginning of class.

"The Hufflepuff chaser? He's very big."

"I heard that he and Zacharias Smith …"

"No way. Smith couldn't pull him. We're investigating."

The assignment for the day was to recall visions from your own past, but Draco was Professor Trelawney's best student ever, so he could get away with doing what he wanted in class. It was more difficult to summon visions from other people's past, especially if you did not know them well. It shouldn't even be possible for a fifteen-year-old boy to do that sort of Divination, but Draco was very advanced thanks to his frequent evening private tutorials with Seer Irwin Jones from the Ministry. The only question was whether he would get in trouble for violating the Hufflepuffs' privacy? He had talked to Chris Cadawallader about Quidditch several times when Harry was dating Cedric last year, so that made him sort of a friend. That made everything morally acceptable.

The High Inquisitor came to their table while Draco and Lavender were admiring last week's Hufflepuff Quidditch practice. More specifically, they were trying to fast-forward to the Quidditch changing room after practice. They had decided that Chris was very, very fit.

"What do you see?" Madam Umbridge asked. Great, she was another person without any Divination skill who expected to be able to see visions in a standard crystal ball.

"The shower room of the Quidditch changing room," Draco said, because the vision finally shifted to show that. Lavender said, "Yes!" and Madam Umbridge tried harder to see the vision, but then she remembered her purpose and stopped.

"That's fascinating, Mr. Potter, but I can suggest better uses of your considerable talents," she said. She had her clipboard out, so this were part of her inspection. Draco didn't want to get Professor Trelawney into trouble, and that meant that he had to keep the High Inquisitor happy. Draco cleared the crystal ball and awaited orders. Lavender was also very disappointed.

"Please do a reading for a Mr. Barty Crouch Jr," she said.

He had thought of doing that as soon as he came into the Divination classroom, but he hadn't because that would be wrong. Irwin had told him again and again to use his Divination powers responsibly and legally. With great powers comes great responsibility and all that bollocks. Draco didn't want to get in trouble with Irwin, Professor Dumbledore, or his parents.

"I can't, Madam. That would be illegal," Draco said. "I need to know someone to do a reading. Only the Ministry Seers can do readings for whoever they want. Besides, Barty Crouch Jr is dead." There was no chance that Lavender Brown was a Death Eater spy who would report back to the Dark Lord that Draco and Madam Umbridge were looking for Crouch, but she had an excellent memory for names and a big mouth. It couldn't hurt to be safe. Lavender was very interested in what Draco and Madam Umbridge were discussing, but she knew when to keep her mouth shut and listen.

"You know my position, Mr. Potter. I give you permission." Madam Umbridge tapped her pen impatiently on her clipboard, as if this was part of the Divination inspection. She was pressuring Draco to use his Divination skills to do something morally questionable. She was not a nice woman.

"You should talk to the Ministry Seers or maybe a Necromancer," Draco said, but he didn't expect her to give up. Like Harry said, she was like a bulldog when she had a mission. He leaned forward and began to do the reading. And failed. Nothing. Crouch's disguise must be very, very good.

"Sorry, it didn't work" he said, just as the crystal ball unfogged to show a toilet. Lavender cheered, and Madam Umbridge demanded to know what they were seeing.

"It worked! He's in the loo," Lavender told the High Inquisitor. "But you said he's dead. Does that mean… this is the loo in Hell?" This was a very serious matter, but Lavender and Draco laughed so much that Draco almost lost the vision. Draco focused like Irwin taught him for especially difficult and distant readings, and the view in the ball expanded to show that this was definitely a men's toilet. Professor Moody – yes! Just as they thought! – was washing his hands and inspecting his freaky magical eye in the mirror. The bathroom door opened and Professor Snape came in.

"Oh my god, Professor Snape and Professor Moody are in Hell's loo," Lavender said. "Stop it before we have to watch Professor Snape pee. I'd never be able to look him in the eye again if I saw that." She giggled, and Draco had to concentrate very hard on keeping his vision because Lavender was hilarious and she was very cute when she giggled.

"Who was there first? Both of them?" Madam Umbridge asked.

"First only Moody, then Snape came in," Draco said. Thankfully Professor Snape was not there to use the facilities. "They are talking, or Snape is talking and he looks very serious. They're in the teacher's bathroom."

"In Hell," Lavender added. "Mean teachers only."

"What are they saying?"

"You can't get sound on crystal balls," Draco said. "That's a different type of Divination. I've never done that before." The vision fogged up, and Draco was glad it was over.

"Hell's loo is now closed," Lavender announced, and Draco appreciated the joke more than Madam Umbridge did. She took out her wand and obliviated Lavender in the middle of the Divination class! That's dangerous and illegal! Only the Ministry could authorize – then Draco remembered Madam Umbridge's convenient title: acting High Inquisitor.

"What happened?" Lavender asked. She looked at the crystal ball and said, "What happened to the Quidditch showers? Draco, did you see Chris? Oh, Madam Umbridge! We were just doing our class work. Professor Trelawney is a wonderful teacher. She's taught Draco everything he knows, and he's very good at Divination now."

Draco was surprised that no one else in the room seemed aware of what Madam Umbridge had done. She must have set up privacy wards. Hopefully she wouldn't decide to mess around with Draco's mind next. They still didn't have hard evidence linking Professor Moody to Crouch, but Draco's somewhat illegal Divination reading was a good start.

At dinner, a special edition of the 'Daily Prophet' announced a major victory for Lucius Malfoy's supporters against Voldemort's Death Eaters at another attack on Malfoy Manor. Three Death Eaters were killed and two were captured. Hermione asked what crimes the captured Death Eaters would be charged with, and Harry told her that they would be thoroughly punished for all their crimes.

"After their trials," Hermione said. "They were handed over to the aurors, right?"

"Why should they be? The Ministry is not fighting this war. The Manor has all the dungeons and interrogation chambers that Father would need to deal with them."

"Are you saying that the prisoners will be tortured?"

"I don't know anything more than you do. I've only read the article in the 'Prophet'."

Draco wasn't in the mood to deal with another big fight between self-righteous, socially conscious Hermione Granger and proud, Dark wizard Harry Malfoy. He changed the subject by telling them about his reading for Crouch in Divination.

"It's only Divination. It's not real proof," Harry said. Hermione was also not especially impressed. Even after Draco's visions of the third task in the Tri-Wizard tournament, Harry and Hermione didn't take Divination seriously. Their anti-Divination prejudice annoyed Draco a whole lot. Divination was not an exact science, and no one understood how or why it worked, but for some people it really did work. Lavender understood the difference between Draco's visions and Professor Trelawney's conveniently vague fantasies. Why couldn't Harry and Hermione listen to Draco, too?

"It worked, and Madam Umbridge knows it," Draco said. If they weren't going to listen to that part of his story, they would be interested in the second part. In a lower voice, he said, "Then she obliviated Lavender so she couldn't remember anything about Crouch. Umbridge just did it in front of me! Like it was no big deal! Can you believe that?"

Harry nodded. "Good. I wouldn't want our plans to depend on Lavender Brown keeping quiet." He was a Dark wizard, and he had defended his father's use of torture earlier that evening. Draco should not have expected more from a Malfoy.

It was a bigger surprise that Hermione agreed with Harry. "If we had to depend on that, we might as well put everything on the front page of the 'Prophet'," she said. "She talks even more than you do, Draco."

"But that's still dangerous magic. It could damage her brain."

Hermione said to Harry, "Who would notice?" and they both laughed. Well, isn't that just fascinating? Harry and Hermione were the two smartest students in their year, and they knew it and showed off. Draco was used to them making fun of him for being stupid, but now they were picking on one of Draco's good friends. Lavender was a good person, and she was funny and very, very pretty.

After Quidditch practice that evening, Draco asked out Lavender Brown in front of everyone in the Gryffindor Common Room.

"You are pretty, funny, happy, and good. You are a happy daisy in the drab fields of weeds. You are a breath of fresh air in the bogs of our times. You are a ray of sunshine, a lamb, an angel –"

Because she was the perfect girl for him, Lavender laughed and stopped Draco before he said anything more ridiculous, and she said that she would be his girlfriend. They sat together on the couch in the middle of the Common Room all night making out like a couple of horny teenagers until Harry and Hermione came back from the library.

The room immediately became ice cold. Harry Malfoy was not happy. Draco removed his hands from Lavender's breasts, and he tried to think of something to say, especially since there were still a lot of people in the Common Room watching. But Harry didn't even say hello. He went straight to the fifth year boy's dormitory and slammed the door behind him.

"Um, well, Harry must have a lot of homework for tomorrow," Draco said, because he had to say something.

Hermione had not reacted as dramatically as Harry, but she was not about to congratulate Draco on his new beautiful girlfriend. Lavender straightened her blouse, and Draco ran his fingers through his messy hair in some vague attempt to make it somewhat orderly. Hermione came over to the couch and said in a low voice, "Good for you, Draco. You found a new way to annoy Harry now. You're angry with us because of what we said at dinner, right? Grow up. It's been a bad night for Harry. You should go after him."

A bad night? Draco's first thought was that he should do what Hermione said and hear what happened to Harry. Did it involve Crouch or Voldemort? But that thought quickly passed, because he had a beautiful girl in his arms who deserved better than to be tossed aside as soon as Harry came along. Harry's reaction had embarrassed Lavender – was she not considered good enough for Harry Malfoy's best friend? – and now Hermione was being rude to her. He didn't ask her out to annoy Harry!

Lavender Brown was not a meek little mouse, and she was not intimidated by Hermione Granger's class rank or test scores. She could stand up for herself. "Not everything Draco does is about you and Harry," Lavender said. "Isn't he allowed to do something without your permission? My _boyfriend_ can think for himself."

Draco smiled and hugged Lavender tighter because he was beginning to realize she was more wonderful than he had known.

"That's great," Hermione said. "Now go talk to Harry, Draco."

Draco nodded, and Hermione went to her dormitory. Lavender said, "That girl needs to loosen up. Everything is the end of the world with her." She snuggled closer to him, and Draco wondered whether he should give Harry time to cool down. But something bad happened to Harry, and Draco had to know what happened.

He kissed his girlfriend and said, "You are the best girlfriend ever and I want to stay here all night with you, but I should see what's going on with Harry."

Lavender pouted very cutely, and Draco knew that she wasn't angry about Hermione anymore. "I suppose you should, or else Hermione may come down here and yell at us again."

Harry was already in bed with his curtains closed when Draco came in. Closed curtains never kept Draco away when he wanted to talk. Harry could set up locking wards around his bed if he really wanted to keep everyone away, but there was none, and that was enough to reassure Draco that Harry would talk to him.

Draco opened the curtains and saw that Harry dressed for bed and reading a muggle book for his despised Muggles Studies class. Harry looked up from his book and didn't tell Draco to go away. Draco said, "Can we talk, or should I put on a jumper first? You're not angry with me, are you?"

Harry looked very embarrassed and shook his head no. "Sorry about that. Accidental magic, it never does anything right."

"No worries. Hermione said you had a bad night. What happened?"

Harry closed the curtain, set up the necessary privacy and locking wards, and told Draco the story. Hermione was right. It had been an extremely bad night for Harry.

Voldemort had been very angry after his defeat by Lucius Malfoy's forces at Malfoy Manor that afternoon. He had lost five good men, and he wanted revenge. What better way to get revenge than to use his spies in Hogwarts and finally capture Harry Malfoy?

Harry and Hermione always worked at the same table in the library every night. Everyone in the school knew where to find them after dinner, including Professor Moody. Hermione was called away on prefect business. A note said that a Gryffindor first-year girl needed to be taken to the hospital wing, and Hermione spent half an hour looking for her before she suspected that it was a ruse.

Harry had been alone when Professor Moody came in the library to take out a big stack of books from the Restricted Section. Harry and Hermione and, to a lesser extent, the rest of the school were fascinated by the Restricted Section. Moody asked Harry to help him carry his books to his office, and, of course, Harry agreed immediately.

"I knew he was dangerous and probably a Death Eater, but those books looked amazing. One had smoke coming out of it. I just wanted to see the titles, then leave them in his office before anything could happen."

"Forget about fighting Voldemort. Your true calling is to be a librarian," Draco joked. "Then what happened?"

Voldemort had learned from his success at the Tri-Wizard tournament. The bottom book was a port-key, and it was activated when Harry entered Moody's office.

"A port-key? Where did you go? How did you get back? Are you OK?"

"I was in Voldemort's lair for about two seconds," Harry said. He reached into his shirt and took out a necklace that Draco had seen Harry wearing even when he was in the shower. It had a small pendant with the Malfoy family crest. "It's an emergency port-key. Father gave it to me last summer. It sent me back to Malfoy Manor. Father came with me back to Hogwarts. Crouch got away, but I don't think Voldemort will be very happy with him."

When Hermione couldn't find Harry in the library, she knew something was wrong and she went straight to Professor Moody's office. The door was open, but the room was empty. Moody was still their most likely candidate for the Death Eater spy, so Hermione did the foolish Gryffindor thing of going into the office and looking for clues herself. She heard something big thumping in a big trunk in the back of the room and a muffled voice calling for help. The key was in the lock. She wasn't foolish or Gryffindor-ish enough to unlock the trunk herself. She found Professor McGonagall, and Professor McGonagall unlocked the trunk and found the real Alistair Moody tied up in there. Crouch had been using poly-juice to impersonate Moody for over a year!

"By then, Father and I had returned to Hogwarts and we all went to Dumbledore and told him that we were right all along about the so-called Professor Moody."

"Wow. And you're certain you're all right?"

"I'm fine. It was a bit tiring, though, and those two seconds in front of the Dark Lord were scary. Now I'm supposed to read this horrible _Tom Sawyer_ book for tomorrow's Muggle Studies class. I don't believe that American muggles speak like this."

"What happens now? Is the real Moody OK? Is Madam Umbridge leaving?"

"Moody has been sent to St. Mungo's. He seems all right physically, especially considering that he spent the last year and a half in a trunk. Father decided that we needed someone we can trust and rely on for this year's DADA professor: Professor Dolores Umbridge."

"You're kidding, right? She's a Ministry official. What does she know about Defense Against the Dark Arts? Our O.W.L.s are this year."

Harry laughed, and Draco realized that he was thinking too much like Harry and Hermione. What did he care about the qualifications of his professors or his exams? He didn't like Madam Umbridge, and he didn't want her around Hogwarts. But she would look after Harry better than any other person they could get as a new DADA professor on a short notice, and Harry needed people to look after him. Thank Merlin for that emergency port-key!

"She promised that she would prepare us thoroughly for our O.W.L.s. She'll be fine. Even your beloved Headmaster agreed that it would be a good idea. Now please tell me, what's happening with Lavender Brown?"

While hearing about Harry's adventure, Draco had completely forgotten about the important events of his evening. Now he knew that Harry was safe, and he could think and smile about the new development in his love life. "I begged Lavender to go out with me tonight. I called her a happy daisy. You don't really mind, do you?"

"A happy daisy?" Harry grimaced at the awfulness of that compliment, and Draco had to agree that it was pretty bad. "I don't really know her. She seems to like you. She let you fondle her breasts after you've been dating for two hours."

Draco didn't expect Harry to be enthusiastic about him dating Lavender, but he was relieved that Harry wasn't going to make things difficult for him. Everything would be OK now. "She's wild. But she's also a really _good_ person. She's straight-forward, nothing complicated, nothing serious, no secrets, no dark side at all." Draco hadn't realized it before, but she was the anti-Harry-Malfoy. Well, he didn't need another Harry in his life. One was enough.

"If she's what you want, I'm happy for you. She's very pretty. Now get out of my bed and let me read this awful muggle book."

* * *

Thanks for your reviews! 


	13. Hogwarts Year 5, pt 3

Chapter 13 – Hogwarts Year 5, pt 3

On the first day of Defense Against the Dark Arts with 'Professor' Dolores Umbridge, she explained how the OWL exams were structured, administered, and graded, and she gave them practice OWL questions for the theoretical DADA section.

"That was the most boring class ever," Draco complained at lunch. "We weren't even allowed to take out our wands!"

"Umbridge knows a lot more about the OWLs than any of our other DADA teachers," Hermione said, as if that were something they should be happy about. "But I'm surprised she could be hired without any teaching experience or qualifications."

Draco and Harry laughed. Teaching qualifications? Had Hermione ever looked at the teaching staff at Hogwarts? Hagrid, the barely-literate gameskeeper promoted to professor. The dead History of Magic professor. Lovable and supportive Professor Snape. Knowledgeable and wise Professor Trelawney. And just look at the DADA professors!

"You should tell the Headmaster that you disapprove of his staff selection process," Harry said, because he never passed an opportunity to insult Professor Dumbledore.

"Or you can complain to the Hogwarts Board of Governors," Draco said, because if Harry was going to mock the Headmaster, Draco was allowed to mock Lucius Malfoy, too. "Harry, did your dad miss the meetings when they approved hiring Death Eaters to teach _Defense_ against the Dark Arts?"

It was always a risk to make fun of Harry's father, but today the joke was accepted as a joke and Harry laughed. "Father had to find someone to teach me the Unforgivables," Harry said. "Fake-Moody taught them well. Or else Professor Snape would finally get the DADA job."

Hermione laughed even louder than Draco at that idea. Draco hadn't realized that Harry, Hermione, and he had been using a privacy spell until Lavender poked him in the arm and waved her hands a lot. Ron Weasley and the rest of their Gryffindor friends were used to Draco, Harry, and Hermione's privacy bubbles, but now Lavender was Draco's girlfriend and she was very, very nosy.

Once Harry had removed the privacy spell, Draco explained, "We were laughing at Professor Snape."

"You don't need to use privacy spells for laughing at Snape," Lavender said. "We're Gryffindors. We all laugh at Snape. What was the joke? About his hair? Or his big nose? Or his teeth? Did you know that Professor Lupin and Mr. Black used to call him 'Snivellus'? I bet you grew up with those stories, Draco. Snivellus! Isn't that brilliant?"

Draco knew that Lavender meant well. She was reaching out to Harry and Hermione and trying to join in their Snape-bashing fun. But she was doing it all wrong, and Draco hoped she stopped talking before she got into any more trouble.

Harry was in a merciful mood, and instead of telling Lavender all the reasons why she was an inferior human being to Professor Snape, Harry excused himself and left the Great Hall to spend the rest of lunch in the library. After taking a few more bites of her food, Hermione followed.

Lavender watched Harry and Hermione leave, and she knew she had screwed up with them. She was the most popular girl in Gryffindor. She wasn't used to saying the wrong thing and driving people away. "Sorry," she said to Draco. "I don't understand Harry Malfoy, and I never will. I thought he didn't like Professor Snape anymore."

"Things between Harry and Snape are complicated," Draco began, and then stopped because he couldn't explain that Snape was a double-agent only pretending to hate Harry, or that Harry had been having private, semi-secret meetings with Snape since he was a second-year. "It's top-secret, family business. If I told you about it, Harry's dad would hunt me down and kill me. I know you didn't mean any harm, and Harry will know that, too, when he's done overreacting."

Lavender wasn't willing to risk Lucius Malfoy's wrath in order to hear gossip about Professor Snape, the least attractive teacher at Hogwarts. She had (unintentionally) driven Harry and Hermione away, and now she had Draco's complete and undivided attention all to herself. She smiled prettily and said, "I don't want Harry Malfoy to hate me and turn me into a newt, so I'll never tell him another Snape joke. You can tell Harry that I think that Professor Snape has beautiful hands and an incredibly sexy voice."

"Should I be jealous?"

She laughed and kissed Draco on the cheek. "Don't worry. I've always had a thing for tall, strong Quidditch players." Then she kissed him on the lips, he kissed her, and Professor Umbridge took away 10 points for 'excessive public display of affection'. Draco hadn't known that was against the school rules. Umbridge removed another 10 points for the same reason at dinner. Lavender Brown was a very tactile person, and she liked kissing a lot. Draco knew that all the other Gryffindor guys were madly jealous, except Harry.

On the second day of DADA class, Professor Umbridge had them take another practice theoretical DADA OWL exam. It was so boring that Draco fell asleep in the middle and therefore got a very poor score. On the third day, Umbridge gave them a third practice exam. It was so boring that Harry fell asleep, too.

Hermione asked at the beginning of the fourth class, "When will we begin preparing for the practical part of the exam?" She was given detention for her impertinence in challenging how her professor was running the class. Draco was giving detention later in the same class for taking his wand out of his schoolbag when he was looking for more parchment. Umbridge had repeatedly forbidden them from having their wands on their desks during her class.

"I understand that you are used to disobeying the school rules," she said to Draco in front of the entire class. "It is a common problem in your family. Your father and your uncle, Black, have gotten more disciplinary complaints than any other aurors in the department. They will not go far at the Ministry. You do not want to make the same mistakes they have made."

Draco was too surprised by the detention and personal attack on his family to be able to think of something to say to defend himself. He put his wand back in his schoolbag and felt miserable. Madam Umbridge was a very, very mean witch.

"Tell your father to get rid of her," Hermione told Harry after class. "Immediately."

"One detention won't destroy your academic career," Harry said, but he knew that wouldn't satisfy Hermione. She was the only Gryffindor who never got detentions (because she was the only Gryffindor who always did her homework and stayed awake during all her classes – Draco wondered whether the Sorting Hat made a mistake with her), and she didn't deserve one for asking a question.

"What about Draco's detention? And what she said about Mr. Potter and Mr. Black? That was cruel. We need to use our wands to prepare for the practical part of the OWLs. We haven't even covered most of the fifth year Defense curriculum. How can we answer questions about spells she won't teach us?"

Harry didn't have any counter-arguments for that. He said that he would meet with Madam Umbridge privately after dinner. Draco thought that would fix everything because Madam Umbridge worshipped the Malfoy family.

Harry was still in Madam Umbridge's repulsive office when Draco and Hermione came to serve their detentions. The walls were filled with pictures of _kittens_. Madam Umbridge sat on a magenta couch and daintily sipped a cup of tea. Harry was sitting in a light pink upholstered armchair and he held a glass of red wine. Was it against school rules to serve alcohol to students? The most surprising part of the scene was Harry's clothes. He had removed his black outer robes and long black gloves that he wore for mourning his old fiancé. Harry looked much less evil without the black gloves. He wore a gray jumper with the standard black trousers, and he looked normal, relaxed, and comfortable. Madam Umbridge smiled and simpered at Harry as if he was the most marvelous person ever.

It didn't seem like a good idea to ruin the cosy domestic scene by reminding Madam Umbridge that Hermione and Draco needed to serve their detentions. "Sorry, Professor, we'll come back later," Hermione said.

Madam Umbridge scowled at the interruption, and Harry pretended that he didn't notice her reaction. He smiled too broadly to be sincere, and said, "Hermione, Draco, please stay. Professor Umbridge and I were just talking about you."

Madam Umbridge didn't look like she was going to invite Draco and Hermione to sit down and join them for a cup of tea or glass of wine, but she was also not going to risk Harry's displeasure by being rude to them and making them scrub toilets without magic for detention.

"I did not realize the strength of your alliance to the Malfoy family," Madam Umbridge said, half-daring and half-hoping that Draco or Hermione would contradict her. The Malfoy family did not have many 'mudblood' or 'blood traitor' allies, but Draco and Hermione would stand by Harry no matter what.

Harry said, "They are my most loyal friends. I trust them completely, and I look after them as best as I can." Loyalty, trust, friendship – that was a very Gryffindor-esque declaration for Harry Malfoy. Draco would have laughed at him for being soppy, if Madam Umbridge wasn't there listening and looking like her tea had been replaced with threstral piss. Did she expect to have Harry's friendship all to herself just because she gave him some wine?

"Very well," she said. "Ms. Granger, Mr. Potter, you are excused from detention tonight. I expect you have both learned your lesson and understand that I expect to be obeyed in class." She looked like she was in pain saying that, but then she looked back and saw the approving look of Harry Malfoy and she smiled and was happy again. Didn't she realize that she was an old and repulsive hag, while Harry was an unbelievably good-looking fifteen-year-old student? It was indecent.

Harry waved to Draco and Hermione to leave, and he started to tell Madam Umbridge a very long and funny story about happy times at Malfoy Manor. Draco didn't want to leave Harry there with Umbridge fawning over him and plying him with alcohol, but he knew that he wasn't going to be invited to stay. Harry would have to look after himself. Draco and Hermione walked back to Gryffindor Tower.

"Why did he take off his mourning?" Hermione asked. "Is that allowed? He even wears it in the Common Room."

"Maybe he knew he'd get further flirting with Umbridge if he didn't look like a grieving widow," Draco said. "Not that I'm jealous. Harry can flirt with whoever he wants, even Umbridge, although she's awful and she insulted his two best friends in class today."

"He's probably acting on his father's orders," Hermione said, and Draco decided that she was right. Everyone knew that Lucius Malfoy was unreasonable, and he would expect his son to do terrible things for the sake of the Malfoy family. It must be part of the Malfoys' nefarious plans to manipulate the Ministry of Magic. Lucius Malfoy could be seducing dozens of repulsive old spinsters and bachelors working for the Ministry of Magic. Draco always knew that Lucius Malfoy was evil.

Back in the Gryffindor Common Room, Lavender asked Draco why he was back already from detention, and Hermione told her that Madam Umbridge only required them to listen to her talk about obedience and classroom control.

"That's decent of her," Lavender said, baffled.

"Harry was there, too," Draco said. "He'd turn her into a toad if she did anything to Hermione and me. He doesn't like any of the rest of you, though, so watch out."

Harry returned an hour later. He was once again dressed in his heavy, all-black traditional mourning. He had looked a lot happier when he was drinking and chatting with Madam Umbridge. Did that mean that Harry was a good actor, or did he really feel uncomfortable when he was surrounded by his housemates?

Draco removed Lavender from his lap – she was a very, _very_ tactile person – and told his Quidditch teammates to wait for him before resuming their intense strategy session for next week's Gryffindor/Ravenclaw match, and then he walked over to Harry and Hermione.

"She's not as bad as you think," Harry was saying to Hermione when Draco sat on the couch next to them.

"Harry, were you really flirting with Madam Umbridge all evening?" Draco asked.

Harry didn't seem even remotely embarrassed by his actions. The shameless flirt! "It's called good manners," Harry said. "She's lonely here. None of the other Hogwarts professors is very nice to her, because of her position as the Ministry's High Inquisitor. They feel threatened by her."

Draco had assumed that Umbridge's High Inquisitor duties were over now that they had uncovered the identity of Voldemort's unknown spy at Hogwarts. She hadn't given up her mission to reform the school? Draco didn't blame the professors for not lining up to be her new best friend. Poor Professor Trelawney!

"Did Umbridge tell you what she plans on doing next, as High Inquisitor?" Hermione asked. She was probably not as concerned about Professor Trelawney as Draco was, but she was also not feeling very sympathetic towards poor, lonely, mean Professor Umbridge.

"She is analyzing the OWL and NEWT scores from the last ten years to identify trouble spots in the curriculum and teaching staff. The Headmaster wouldn't give her access to the student test scores, so she had to get them from the Ministry. The Headmaster does not want to listen to her ideas for reform, but the Ministry won't let him ignore her forever."

Draco and Hermione told Harry again and again that it was a very bad idea for Madam Umbridge to 'reform' Hogwarts by herself, without the approval or cooperation of the Headmaster, the professors, or the students, but Harry had already made up his mind. Madam Umbridge was an ally of the Malfoy family, and now the Malfoys would use her to change Hogwarts into something better. This was going to be a disaster.

* * *

Draco-as-Voldemort sat on his stone throne in the dank, dark dungeon of somewhere nasty, surrounded by his repulsive loyal Death Eaters. He waved his scaly hand and said, "You, read what our friend Llllluuucius says to us." 

The tall, skinny man did not look very happy with the request – the Dark Lord was known to hex the messenger if the news was bad enough – but he took the parchment from Mr. Pettigrew and began to read in a shaky voice:

_Tom,_

_My prisoners have told us everything they knew. Perhaps you could hear their shrieks all the way from your hideout in the Orkney Islands, Donovan's Cave. No wonder your men are so weak and tired when they apparate to Malfoy Manor. It is a long distance for second-rate wizards to travel._

_You see that I know exactly where you are, and I have not sent the Aurors. Here is another sign of my good faith: You have not heard the entire prophecy about your connection to young Draco Potter. It now lies in the Department of Mysteries at the Ministry of Magic. It would be in your best interest to hear all that is known about your death. The only person who has heard the entire prophecy is Albus Dumbledore._

_I have more ways of entering and accessing material in the Ministry of Magic than anyone else in the Wizarding World, including the fool Cornelius Fudge himself. I await your next move._

_Malfoy._

Draco-as-Draco woke up. Voldemort was in the Orkney Islands! He would tell Professor Dumbledore, Professor Dumbledore would tell the Ministry, the Ministry would send aurors, and the bad guys would be defeated. Draco wrote to the Headmaster and sent the note by house elf, and then he decided to tell Harry the good news.

For once, Harry was asleep when Draco opened his bed curtains. He did not remain sleeping for long. Draco sat down on the bed and bounced on the bed springs until Harry woke up.

"I know where Voldemort is," Draco said. "Donovan's Cave in the Orkney Islands."

Harry began to sit up. "How do you know? Did the Dark Lord say so?"

"No, he got a letter from your dad, and your dad said that's where Voldemort was. I already wrote to Dumbledore. Now the Ministry will send aurors and we'll capture all the real Death Eaters."

Draco expected Harry to be a bit happier about this news. His father won the Death Eater mini-civil-war. Voldemort was found. Draco would stop having his creepy out-of-body experiences. Life could become normal again, or at least, it could become as normal as possible when your best friend is the Boy Who Lived.

Harry said, "Father must have a good reason why he is writing letters to the Dark Lord instead of attacking. What else did the letter say?"

It was perfectly clear to Draco that Lucius Malfoy was writing letters because he didn't want to do the dirty work himself. He was freaking out the Dark Lord and buying time so Dumbledore and the Ministry could send the aurors who would defeat and capture Voldemort. But Draco wasn't going to tell Harry what he really thought about Lucius Malfoy and his cowardly motivation. He was not an idiot.

"The rest of the letter said something about how Voldemort hasn't heard the complete prophecy about him and me, which is total bollocks. Mum says that Snape told Voldemort most of it when we were babies. Your dad told Voldy that he has to break into the Department of Mysteries at the Ministry of Magic to get the prophecy. There's no way Voldemort is dumb enough to fall for that trap."

Harry looked more interested in that news about the prophecy than in the revelation of the secret location of Voldemort's hide-out. "Father has always said that the Dark Lord was more concerned about his immortality than the reformation of the wizarding world."

"It won't matter because Dumbledore has gotten my message by now and he's sending the aurors to the Orkney Islands. Do you think this qualifies as fulfilling the prophecy? Voldemort will die because of me, but not directly."

"You make it sound like it's going to be easy to kill the Dark Lord. Haven't you learned by now that it's very, very difficult to kill Dark wizards? Maybe if Dumbledore himself went to the Orkneys, he'd have a chance against the Dark Lord."

"So you don't think it's over?"

"No. It's barely begun."

* * *

After Harry's meeting with Professor Umbridge, she reluctantly agreed to have once-a-week practical DADA lessons to cover the spells on the OWLs that they had not seen before. It quickly became obvious why she had been opposed to all wand use in class. Professor Umbridge was a _terrible_ witch, and she refused to admit that she was doing everything wrong. She said the spell, waved her wand, and expected the students to believe that it worked. At first, Harry had tried to help out by volunteering to practice/demonstrate it himself in front of the class. Madam Umbridge did not like that, and Harry stopped volunteering. 

"It's all in the text books, anyway," Harry told Draco and Hermione later in the Gryffindor common room. "I've done all of the spells before."

That must have been part of Lucius Malfoy's accelerated magic education program for his son and heir, with the emphasis on spells that could be used to do nasty things to one's enemies.

"Show us how," Hermione said. "Draco and me. And Ron. And I suppose Lavender, if Draco insists on dating her."

"Lavender Brown brightens my life," Draco said because that's the sort of thing he was expected to say. "What do you want us to do?"

Harry did not look very happy about Hermione's rapidly forming plans, but he did not stop her. If Draco knew how much extra work was going to be involved, he would have resisted more strenuously. But Hermione was his friend, and he thought that she wouldn't make him do anything _too_ awful. He was wrong.

Hermione said, "Harry is going to teach us the fifth year practical defense spells. We will have to find a proper room in the castle for our meetings. All the fifth year Gryffindors will come. Should we help the fourth year students, too? That's a very important year for preparing for the OWLs, and Umbridge won't be much help to them."

"All of the fifth year defense spells?" Draco repeated. "Like what Umbridge is trying to teach us, but we'll actually do it right?" That didn't sound like fun, but it wasn't too awful. He should have known it wasn't awful enough for Hermione Granger and her fascist OWL study plans.

"If we go at Umbridge's pace, we'll never finish in time for the OWLs," she said. "Harry will have to teach us everything from the book, independent of what we do in class."

That sounded like a lot of work for everyone, especially Harry. Teaching was different from just doing the spell yourself, and Harry was not a very patient or compassionate person, especially not when dealing with people he didn't like. Harry didn't like most of the students at Hogwarts. "I am not a teacher," Harry said. "I will help you and Draco because you are my friends."

"And Ron and Lavender," Draco said, because if he was going to have to suffer, he wanted others to suffer with him.

"Fine," Harry said. "Draco, Hermione, Ron, and Lavender. That's it. Then if you still care about the other Gryffindors and the fourth years and anyone else, you can teach them yourselves."

And that's how 'Dumbledore's Army' began. Hermione called it the 'Practical Defense Study Group', but everyone else called it the DA. Harry never came. Before the DA meetings, he taught interesting and difficult spells to Hermione, Draco, Ron, and, whenever she decided to come, Lavender. Then they showed what they learned from Harry to everyone at the meeting. First it was only the other fifth year Gryffindors, then fifth-year students from other houses, then it expanded to a little bit of everyone from everywhere.

It was a cool, exclusive secret club. You had to be interviewed, screened, and approved for membership. You had to sign a magically binding contract before you were told where the meetings took place, when they would be held, or even who was running the club. They would get in trouble if anyone, especially Madam Umbridge, found out what they were doing. Everyone in the school wanted to join, except Harry.

He had regular private meetings with Madam Umbridge, and together they thought of new ways to improve Hogwarts. Then new High Inquisitor decrees would be posted, and Harry would spend the next week trying to get Madam Umbridge to change her mind and revoke the horrible decree that he had accidentally suggested to her.

"Why do you keep on meeting with her?" Draco asked.

"She listens to me," Harry said. "She does not think I am going to be the next Dark Lord. She is nice to me. She gives me decent wine. She tells me about the Ministry and Father's allies there. She is a very perceptive person."

"Then why hasn't she caught Dumbledore's Army?"

Harry had a special grimace for whenever someone mentioned the DA, but Draco knew that the club didn't annoy him as much as he pretended it did. Hermione and Draco told Harry about what happened in each meeting, who came, what they covered, and what problems students had. Harry was interested, even though he would complain about it and say that Draco and Hermione needed a new hobby.

Harry said, "She's too smart to break up the only source of real Defense training at Hogwarts," and Draco smiled at the compliment.

"You run a pretty good Defense course, too," he said. He had learned more from Harry in the last couple of months than he had in four years of DADA lessons.

"Hermione never gave me a choice. She must be glad that I'm staying away from your little Army. She gets to run the show."

"I do, too," Draco said, but he knew that Harry wouldn't believe him. It was true, though. Draco didn't understand the theoretical discussions that Harry and Hermione had about how and why the spells worked, but once Harry stopped talking and started casting spells, Draco was good at picking up on the subtle wand movements and tricks that Harry used. At the DA meetings, Hermione would talk too much about the theory, and then Draco would take over and show everyone how to cast the spells. All the younger students idolized him for his Quidditch skills, and they listened raptly to every word he said at DA meetings. He was a natural leader, and he was a good teacher. He was having more fun than he would ever admit, especially not to Hermione or Harry.

* * *

Voldemort was not captured in the Orkney Islands. Draco's next vision was in the same dungeon as the previous ones. No one was attacking his hide-out. It was business-as-usual for the evil Dark Lord, and he was working on getting into the Ministry of Magic to see the rest of the prophecy, as well as organizing attacks on Malfoy Manor. Maybe Lucius Malfoy was right about the Dark Lord's obsession with immortality. Or maybe the Dark Lord was dumber than everyone thought. Even Draco could see that the prophecy in the Department of Mysteries was a trap. 

The 'Daily Prophet' did not mentioned any more glorious victories of Lucius Malfoy's forces over the Dark Lord's minions. By early December, Harry no longer received any response to letters sent to Malfoy Manor. Mrs. Lily Malfoy was still living in a secret, safe location far away from her husband, which Draco was not supposed to know was her sister's muggle house in Surrey, and she was also unable to communicate with her husband. Lucius Malfoy was not winning the fight against Voldemort, and Harry was desperate for any news.

Harry came back from an extra-long meeting with Madam Umbridge, and he didn't even stop to say hi to Hermione or Draco in the Common Room. He looked miserable, and he went straight to the dormitories. Draco had been listening to Lavender's plans for a Gryffindor Quidditch cheerleading team, but when he saw Harry come in, he said good night and went after Harry.

Harry was the only one in the dormitory. He had taken off his outer robes, and he was looking through his special robes in the back of his wardrobe.

"Are you going out tonight?" Draco asked. It was nearly curfew on a Wednesday night. Why should Harry be changing into another robe?

"I'm leaving," Harry said. He took out a set of dueling robes. Draco hadn't known that Harry owned a pair. Harry put them on, and Draco was still very confused.

"Where are you going?" Draco asked. "Do you have a duel? What's going on?"

"Father requested reinforcements from the Ministry to defend the Manor against a major attack that the Dark Lord is planning for tonight," Harry said. He was now working on the many buttons on the robes. "The Ministry refused."

"Does your dad know you're coming to save the day?"

"Not yet. Madam Umbridge heard about the attack from the Ministry, and we've been trying to get more information from her Ministry colleagues all night. The aurors know that the Dark Lord is coming for my father, and they watch and send in reports. It's ridiculous! My father needs help now."

"How are you getting to him?" Draco asked. Then he noticed that Harry had his necklace with the Malfoy family crest hanging outside his robes. The portkey. Mr. Malfoy would be too busy fighting evil to escort Harry back to Hogwarts if Harry arrived during a Death Eater attack.

A very small part of Draco wanted him to get his own cloak and go with Harry to the Manor to join the righteous fight against Voldemort. After all, Draco's prophecy said that he was the only person who could kill the Dark Lord. But a much larger part of Draco wanted to grab hold of Harry, take away that portkey, and throw it into the lake. He should tell the Headmaster or Professor McGonagall or Professor Snape or even Madam Umbridge. He knew that he wouldn't, though. Harry would hate him forever if he kept him away from his father now.

"Don't go," Draco said.

"I have to."

"Then be careful."

Harry nodded, but he wasn't thinking about Draco or what Draco felt about letting his best friend leave for certain death. He held his wand in his right hand, and he reached up to activate his portkey with his left hand. He took a deep breath, grasped the pendant, and then … nothing. He switched his wand to his left hand and tried to activate the portkey with his right hand. He took off the necklace and held it in both hands and failed to activate it.

Draco barely breathed while he watched Harry fiddle with the pendant. Draco expected Harry to vanish at any second, now without his wand ready for attack. The agony of farewell was being dragged out longer than necessary. It was awful.

"It's deactivated," Harry said. He cast several spells on it with no success. "Father must have done it. Or else the Manor has already fallen." He put the necklace back on, and Draco knew the crisis had passed. Harry wasn't going away. Harry was safe.

"Don't go," Draco said quietly, because he still wasn't able to think anything else.

"How do you expect me to go now? Take the Knight Bus? Borrow your broom and fly to Wiltshire? The floo has been closed since the summer. No portkey access, not even emergency family portkey access. The closest apparition point is outside the gates, where the Death Eaters will be."

Harry wasn't angry. His magic was completely under control. He was desperate and focused. After thinking about the problem for a few moments, he went back to his wardrobe and took out an old piece of parchment that Draco recognized as the Marauder's Map.

"Professor Snape is gone," he said. "I don't know if that's good or bad. He would look after my father if the Dark Lord…" It was too early to say certain things. If Voldemort captured Lucius Malfoy, he'd need more than a bit of help from Severus Snape. Lucius Malfoy would need a miracle. "Dumbledore is here. He is the only wizard the Dark Lord fears. He knows my father is being attacked, and he is doing nothing."

"Should we go see him?" Draco asked. "Maybe if we told him about your emergency portkey, he'd go and see what's happening."

"Dumbledore won't help my father. No one will. Father should have sent for me and Mother. He needs our help." Harry tried to activate his portkey again, then went back to his wardrobe and took out a small box of floo powder. "I'm floo-calling my mother. Come on."

Harry went down to the Common Room and went straight to the big fireplace. The other students stopped and stared at him – the dueling robes, the scary look on his face, his strange behavior. Draco told the group of sixth-year students sitting in front of the fireplace to go away, and Draco cast a privacy spell around Harry and him. Hermione would have to wait to hear the full story later.

Harry kneeled down in front of the fireplace, tossed in the floo powder, and called for Mrs. Lily Malfoy, 4 Privet Drive. After about a minute, her face appeared. Draco wished he knew better privacy spells so that the other Gryffindors wouldn't be able to watch Harry and his mother's conversation. Did any of them read lips?

"Harry, what's wrong? You never call. You've given your aunt Petunia a scare," Mrs. Malfoy said. "Is that Draco? Hello, Draco dear. You're in your Common Room, aren't you?"

"My portkey to the Manor won't work. The Manor is being attacked tonight, and Father needs reinforcements."

"Who told you that?"

"I heard it from my sources in the Ministry. Fudge won't send help, so you and I have to go." Harry sounded like a normal, scared teen-ager asking his mother for help. Draco couldn't stand seeing Harry vulnerable and helpless, and he hoped that Mrs. Malfoy knew the right things to say that would keep Harry from getting himself killed.

"Your father did not send for me. Did he send for you?"

"No, but he needs our help, Mum. How can we get inside the Manor without the emergency portkeys?"

"Harry, be sensible. Your father sent us away last summer because he needs us to be safe. We must trust your father to do what is right. The Manor has been attacked many times. Your father wins those battles." She was calm and reasonable, and Draco thought she was totally right, but it wasn't what Harry wanted to hear.

"You won't help." Harry closed the floo connection and stood up. The floo sparked and announced that Mrs. Lily Malfoy was calling for Harry Malfoy, but Harry wasn't interested. His mother had refused to help. She had abandoned her husband to the Death Eaters. Harry would never forget this betrayal.

He was still plotting how to get to Malfoy Manor, and Draco was the only person who could stop him. Hermione wouldn't be any help. She would just try to talk sense, like Mrs. Malfoy, and Harry would get angry and hate her forever.

Harry said, "Draco, can you force a connection to the Dark Lord? Call up a vision?"

"No," Draco said quickly, even though he didn't really know whether it was possible. He never tried, and he wasn't dumb enough to try now. He worked too hard to keep Voldemort out of his mind to ruin all the effort by breaking down the barriers and trying to peak into Voldy's head.

Draco looked around the Common Room and saw that, of course, everyone was watching Harry and him, although they still couldn't hear what Harry and Draco were saying to each other because of their privacy wards. Hermione could have dismantled Draco's wards, and she looked like she was going to if they didn't start explaining the situation to her soon.

Then Draco noticed some fourth-years had their crystal balls out for Divination. "I'll do a reading, Harry," he said. "Voldemort is too hard, and your father probably is charmed to be un-Seeable, but I'm good at Seeing Snape, even when he's trying to hide."

"OK." Harry summoned a crystal ball from the fourth-year Divination students, without thinking about asking permission. His father was more important than Divination homework assignments. Draco would apologize to them later.

"Let's go upstairs," Draco said. "I need to concentrate." He also needed to get them away from all the other students watching and waiting for the privacy ward to go down. Harry didn't seem aware of all the staring students, but he did not complain and followed Draco up to the dormitory. His mother was still calling for him in the floo.

Draco sat down on the floor and put the crystal ball in front of him. Harry sat across from him and looked into the ball, even though he wouldn't see anything. Draco started easy, Seeing Madam Umbridge in her repulsive office talking by floo to a uniformed Ministry defense official. Then Snape, first darkness from being blocked, but Draco could force his way past. How else could he get early glimpses of their potions exams?

"Snape is outside," Draco said. "In a field. There's a tall stone wall, like twenty feet high, with spikes on the top."

"The Manor's outer walls. They haven't gotten through?"

"Snape hasn't, but… Is your house on a big hill? It's on fire. Sorry. Snape is staying away from the fighting. I think he has medical supplies."

"How big is the fire? Just one wing or is it everywhere? Are the towers still standing?"

"Um, no towers. Should there be? The fire is everywhere. It must be strong magic."

"Can you see fighting? Is there still fighting? Are there prisoners? Bodies?"

"Snape's too far away." Draco tried to See his aunt Bella, but she was blocked. If there was any fighting going on, she would be in the middle of it. He tried Mr. Pettigrew, but the connection was too weak. From the glimpse he did see, Mr. Pettigrew was back in Voldemort's hide-out in the Orkneys. Nothing at all for Crouch/Fake-Moody. He was probably dead.

Draco used all his power to reach out to Lucius Malfoy. He was surprised that it worked. The image on the crystal ball was hazy and smoky, and dark, hooded figures were running in and out of view. All the dark figures were circling a tall man in tattered battle robes. He was covered in soot, dirt, and blood, but he was still recognizable as Mr. Malfoy. He was standing and fighting back, but he was weakening and his enemies were multiplying.

Harry looked at the crystal ball and said, "What can you see? Is Snape all right?"

The connection was not very strong, but Mr. Malfoy was too weak and injured to maintain the un-Seeable charm. Draco watched Mr. Malfoy get hit by a purple hex in his left side and a slashing hex aimed at his feet. If he was watching Mr. Malfoy die in battle, he didn't want to tell Harry until it was over. It wouldn't be long.

Mr. Malfoy fell to his knees and closed his eyes. He was saying something, and Draco wished he had the right equipment to pick up sound. Whatever he was saying was interesting enough to his enemies to prevent them from attacking and finishing him off. Mr. Malfoy kissed his wand and laid it on the ground in front of him. Was he giving himself up, or was he preparing himself for death? Maybe Mr. Malfoy didn't know himself.

"Tell me, Draco," Harry said. "Anything. What are you seeing?"

Mr. Malfoy was hit by a light blue hex, and he fell to the ground. The connection was gone, but it wasn't gone like the way Draco couldn't connect to Crouch. Mr. Malfoy wasn't dead.

"I Saw your father. He was out-numbered, and he was bleeding a lot. He did something weird. He kissed his wand and put it in front of him, and he let them hit him in the back with a light blue hex. He's not dead, Harry, I can sense that, but I can't See anymore."

Harry didn't look up from the crystal ball, but Draco looked at his friend and saw that Harry was crying without making a sound. His face looked like he had been crying the entire time that Draco had been doing his readings.

"He's alive," Draco said.

"Father has been taken hostage," Harry said. "He offered himself as a captive, and the Dark Lord accepted. Were there any other witnesses?"

"There were a bunch of Death Eaters."

"Everyone will know tomorrow. This changes everything." Harry tried to wipe the tears from his face, but it was useless. He was still crying, and he couldn't stop. Shouldn't Harry be glad that his father survived the attack? Malfoy Manor was gone, but Lucius Malfoy was still alive and scheming his way through the Death Eater ranks. Harry looked like his world was coming to an end, and Draco didn't understand why.

"It's awful for your dad to be captured, but why is it bad that people know? Now the aurors can go to the Orkney Islands and save him. He's a Ministry big-shot, and he's insanely rich. You could hire your own army to get him."

Harry shook his head. "Father wouldn't allow that. He was taken captive following the traditional wizarding ways. Now his family must pay the ransom set by Lord Voldemort, or else Father must serve the Dark Lord. It would be dishonorable for him to escape now."

If Hermione were there, she would say that that sounded medieval and stupid. Traditional wizarding ways were nice during weddings and funerals, but not when dealing with evil Dark Wizards. Harry and his mother should not be exchanging civil letters with the Dark Lord about the conditions of Mr. Malfoy's ransom. It wasn't normal!

"What will Voldemort ask for ransom?" Draco asked.

"Dumbledore's head on a platter. Maybe yours and mine, too," Harry said. His face was still red and blotchy, but he wasn't crying anymore. He was thinking, plotting, and planning his next move. "I need to tell Madam Umbridge," he said. "If Father changes sides, the Ministry is going to turn against all our allies. She will know who I need to warn. I'll go down and see Professor Snape when he returns tonight."

"It's late," Draco said. "Should we floo your mum?" She would be interested in the fate of her husband and their family home.

"Do what you want about her. Tell Hermione what happened, too, but no one else. They can wait and see it in tomorrow's 'Daily Prophet'. I'm not going to sleep tonight. Can I borrow your invisibility cloak?"

Harry was in control of himself again, and he was ready to deal with this family disaster head-on. With Lucius Malfoy doomed to serve Voldemort again, Harry was in charge of the Malfoy family.

----

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	14. Hogwarts Year 5, pt 4

Chapter 14 – Hogwarts Year 5, pt 4

There were a half dozen ravens and two hawks circling the Gryffindor table in the Great Hall when Draco came in for breakfast. Harry Malfoy sat at the table writing a response for a black owl standing on the table, next to a tall stack of letters that Harry had already received that morning. There was a special edition of the 'Daily Prophet' at every seat on all four tables and the staff table.

"Who are you writing to?" Draco asked. He sat down next to Harry and looked at the headline of the 'Prophet'. 'LUCIUS MALFOY REJOINS YOU-KNOW-WHO!'

Harry put down his quill and waved at the black owl to join the other fowl overhead. "You're finally awake," he said. "I feel like I've been writing letters non-stop for days. I don't remember how many times I used the time-turner last night. Thank Merlin for Pepper-up potions."

Harry smiled weakly, and he looked miserable and exhausted. His posture was too stiff, his eyes were bright and watery from too much Pepper-up potion, his normally perfect hair actually had a few hairs lying in the wrong direction, and he was wearing the wrong clothes. For the first time all year, he wore normal Gryffindor student robes instead of his all-black mourning. He had had a rough night, but he was trying to act like he was in complete control over the situation.

If Harry wanted to pretend that he was all right, Draco would let him and try to hide how worried he was about his friend. Draco said, "What is this rubbish in the 'Prophet' about your dad changing sides?" He skimmed the first paragraph – no mention of the attack on Malfoy Manor, nothing about Lucius Malfoy being seriously injured and choosing captivity over certain death, no word about ransom.

Harry laughed too loudly at Draco's remark, for the benefit of the few other people in the Great Hall who were all watching them, and Draco was afraid that Harry was going to start crying again. He didn't, though. He was trying to be brave. "It's a very enlightening article. Father would sue if he were not being held captive by an evil Dark wizard."

"Did you hear anything else about your dad?"

Harry set up privacy wards and said, "The Dark Lord sent an owl at four o'clock in the morning. Father will be freed if I kill Dumbledore. I said I would not negotiate until Father wrote me himself." Harry kept his facial expression blank while talking about these horrible things, but Draco couldn't.

"Kill Dumbledore? Is he mad? You can't do that!"

Oops, the privacy wards were not strong enough to prevent the other students from realizing that Draco was yelling. They couldn't hear the words he said, but now everyone was turning to look at what was going on. Draco felt that he was blushing, and Harry strengthened the privacy wards so that they couldn't even hear the murmur of other voices at the table.

Draco had hoped that Harry had been only joking last night about Voldemort asking for Dumbledore's head. Harry wouldn't kill Dumbledore, Draco was 100-percent certain of that, but it still wasn't a good idea to have prolonged 'negotiations' with Voldemort.

"I won't kill Dumbledore. Father will understand," Harry said. Even with the super-powerful privacy wards, he spoke very quietly. He didn't show how miserable he felt, but Draco knew the situation had to be unbearably awful for his friend.

"Is your dad OK? Did Snape see him?" As much as Draco disliked Snape, he was glad that Snape was on their side. He would help Harry now.

Professor Snape was not at the staff table for breakfast yet. Professor McGonagall, Professor Flitwick, and Madam Hooch were there reading the 'Prophet' and learning the news about Mr. Malfoy for the first time. Did the Headmaster already know the truth, or would he accept the 'Daily Prophet's' lies?

"Professor Snape says that Father will recover, but the injuries to his feet were very serious. Father may have to use a cane." That wasn't necessarily _bad_ news. If Lucius Malfoy couldn't walk well, he wouldn't be able to participate in Death Eater attacks, as Voldemort's captive and reluctant supporter. But Draco didn't think that Harry would want to hear that.

Harry continued, "I sent two house elves to look after him. The Dark Lord refuses to let me send a St. Mungo's healer. Professor Snape is making additional healing potions for Father today, but it won't be enough. I don't think that the Dark Lord wants my father to heal properly. I hate him."

More students were coming in, seeing the 'Daily Prophet', and staring at Harry Malfoy. A large crow came in and dropped a letter in front of Harry and flew out. "Who are all the letters from?" Draco asked.

"My father's allies. Madam Umbridge and Professor Snape helped me make a list. I sent three hundred and seven letters so far. Now everyone is sending me their conditions, and I have to accept them all because I am a child, and I need their help too much." Harry reached down into his rucksack and took out a small vial. How many Pepper-up potions did he have? He drank the potion and said, "Sorry. The situation is bad, but it's not hopeless, I think."

How could it not be hopeless for Harry's dad? Draco didn't say anything, though, because he wanted Harry to look and feel better. Harry had definitely taken too many Pepper-up potions. In addition to the watery eyes, his hands were now trembling. Harry needed to sleep.

"What are you telling your three hundred and seven allies?" Draco asked, just as an envelope appeared in front of him addressed to 'Draco Potter, Seat Next to Harry, Gryffindor Table, Great Hall, Hogwarts.' Harry gestured for him to read it, and he looked at the letter that had just arrived for him.

_Dear Mr. Draco Potter,_

_Lucius Malfoy was taken Captive in battle by Tom Riddle, as witnessed by seven Death Eaters and verified by an expert Divination reading. _

_Never doubt Lucius Malfoy's sincere opposition to Riddle and his henchmen. One does not forgive the attempted murderer of one's child. My father is a man of honor and pride, and he will fulfill the conditions of Captivity as required by old wizarding tradition. My family will negotiate with that reprobate Tom Riddle for my father's ransom, but we must prepare ourselves for the worst. _

_I release you from your alliance with the Malfoy family, and I offer you a private alliance with myself until my father is freed again. As my father's fate has shown, none of us will be able to defy Riddle without the support of other powerful wizards._

_Harry Malfoy_

The letter was short, stuffy, and said things that Draco already knew, and yet Draco felt proud to have received it. Harry took Draco's alliance to him as seriously as his father's important Ministry friends. And that 'expert Divination reading' was his! Draco had been able to help Harry last night when no one else could or would.

Draco said, "Don't I already have a _'private_ alliance' with you? You let me sleep in your bed whenever I want."

Harry smiled at the joke, without looking up from his letter. It was apparently a very interesting letter. "Write it out and slip it under my pillow the next time you feel scared and lonely late at night. Victor Krum invites Hermione, you, and me to Bulgaria for the Christmas holidays."

"He's your private ally, too?" Draco still thought of Victor as a student, but he was a fully-trained Durmstrang graduate now.

"His family has been allied with mine for centuries. His father and his cousin Piotr were not at the Manor last night, but they had been there for other attacks. We can trust the Krums." Harry looked much happier now that he knew that he had the Krums' support. Draco didn't know anything about Dark family politics, but he could guess that the Krum family must be important in the east. No wonder why Harry had been so atypically eager to become Victor Krum's friend during the Tri-Wizard Tournament last year.

"I will accept the Christmas invitation for myself," Harry said. "I'll be able to visit my other Eastern European allies and try to get them to drop some of their demands. Nearly everyone wants money. There is a limit to the Malfoy family fortunes, believe it or not." A joke! Good, Harry was beginning to act more like himself. If he would insult the Headmaster or complain about Quidditch, Draco would hug him.

Harry took a fresh piece of parchment from his rucksack and started writing his reply. The original Christmas plan was for Harry and Hermione to stay at Hogwarts to study for their precious OWLs. Now there was something more important in Harry's life than his exams.

"What about your mum?" Draco asked cautiously. "Have you written to her?" He remembered how angry Harry was at his mother last night, but now she was the only family member left who could help Harry forge these new Malfoy family alliances.

"I've been busy," Harry said. In other words, no, he hadn't written to his mother and she was not forgiven. Draco liked Mrs. Lily Malfoy and he didn't think that she had done anything wrong by not running off to Malfoy Manor when the battle was already mostly over, but it wasn't his place to tell Harry that he should be nicer to his mother. Harry wouldn't listen, anyway. He needed to save his father, and no one else mattered.

The Great Hall was mostly filled, but Draco couldn't hear what everyone was saying about Lucius Malfoy and Harry because of the super-strong privacy wards that Harry kept up. Good. Draco put his letter from Harry away, and he started to read the wildly biased and strangely inaccurate 'Daily Prophet' article about Lucius Malfoy giving up the pretense of resistance and declaring his loyalty to Lord Voldemort. There was a photo of the pile of rubble that was once Malfoy Manor, but the article did not explain why Lucius Malfoy thought it was necessary to destroy his home.

The privacy wards came down briefly and then were re-set when Hermione came and took her usual seat across from Harry. She looked like she had slept as little and as poorly as Draco had. They had spent hours last night talking about Harry, and Draco had to admit that Hermione cared about Harry as much as Draco did.

"Oh, Harry, are you all right? Draco told me all about what happened, and then I went to the library this morning to read about the traditional captivity. It's very rare for modern wizards. I'm surprised the Death Eaters recognized what your father was doing. Did Voldemort send his conditions?"

While speaking, Hermione also served Draco, Harry, and herself breakfast. Draco hadn't thought of food since he saw Harry, but he was hungry now that he thought about it. Hermione was a very smart witch. Harry accepted the full plate from her without a complaint. Who knows how many hours had passed since Harry had eaten dinner.

Harry explained while he ate: "He wants me to kill Dumbledore. I'm waiting to hear from Father before I start trying to negotiate something reasonable. I am not a murderer. Besides, if I did kill Dumbledore, I'd have to join the Dark Lord, and that would defeat the purpose of freeing my father from him. Father would remain with me."

Hermione now read the headline of the 'Daily Prophet' and made the expected complaints that it was all stupid rubbish. "Who arranged for everyone to get copies of the paper?" she asked. "Was it the Ministry? This is slander."

"I did," Harry said. "I wanted everyone to know what had happened to my father, so I wouldn't have to explain why I am not attending classes anymore. I didn't expect this blatant propaganda, though. Madam Umbridge is speaking with her colleagues at the Ministry to find out who's to blame. My family has many enemies."

"You aren't attending classes?" Draco asked. "Is that allowed? For how long?"

"Harry has more important things to worry about," Hermione said in her usual Draco-is-an-idiot tone of voice. How comforting to know that Hermione could still treat Draco normally, in spite of last night's events. She asked Harry, "Who are you writing to?"

"Your friend Victor Krum." Harry grinned, Hermione blushed, and Draco laughed. For a moment, it was almost like a normal breakfast, except the black birds overhead waiting for pledges of money and favors from the Malfoy family in exchange for their continued support. "We're invited to the Krums' estate for the Christmas holidays. Dumbledore won't be able to watch the owls come and go from Bulgaria, and I will be able to visit my other Eastern European allies. Will you come, Hermione?"

"The entire Christmas holidays?" Hermione asked. She glanced over at Ron Weasley, who was sitting next to her and talking to Lavender. She was still not dating Ron Weasley, for reasons that Draco never understood, but she would feel guilty about spending three weeks with Victor Krum. But she was a good friend, and Harry needed someone he could trust unconditionally when he was in Bulgaria. "Yes, I'll go. What about you, Draco?"

"I always go home for Christmas." Draco noticed that Harry hadn't even asked him if he wanted to come. Not that that would have changed his response, but it would be nice to know that Harry wanted him there as much as he wanted Hermione.

Now that Hermione had decided on the correct, unselfish course of action, she expected Draco to follow it, too. She said, "Lucius Malfoy's closest allies come from Eastern Europe. Harry needs our support."

Harry intervened before Hermione could continue her lecture on loyalty and supporting a friend in need. "Draco doesn't have to come. His parents wouldn't let him go with us, anyway. Mrs. Potter hates my father." Three more owls came with urgent messages for Harry. He lowered the privacy wards, and Draco could finally hear what everyone else was saying.

Lavender had sat next to Draco at some point, when he was paying too much attention to Harry to notice. She was still talking to Ron, and neither Lavender nor Ron realized that Draco and Hermione were now listening.

"Didn't you see the last paragraph? Harry is going to join You-Know-Who during the Christmas hols," Lavender said. "He could use 'Imperio' on Draco and Hermione to make them join. We have to do something to save them."

Draco smiled and was ready to join in their laughter over Lavender's ridiculous joke, but Ron and Lavender didn't laugh when he expected them to. They must be pretending to be serious, as a joke, because they couldn't really believe that about Harry.

Ron said, "Not Hermione. You-Know-Who would kill her on the spot because she's not a pureblood. Unless you think that's part of the plan—"

"If you say another word, I don't know what I'll do to you, Ronald Weasley, but it won't be nice," Hermione hissed, and Draco realized that Ron and Lavender weren't joking. Even Harry looked up from his letters.

"The 'Daily Prophet' article is wrong," Hermione said. She noticed that other Gryffindors were watching and listening to her, too, so she amplified her voice to let them hear more easily. "The Death Eaters burnt down Malfoy Manor and nearly killed Mr. Malfoy in battle. Mr. Malfoy is being held captive by the Death Eaters against his will, and Harry is trying to ransom him."

She took the charm off her voice and glared at Ron, Lavender, and anyone else who looked at her. Draco would never be able to intimidate people like Harry and Hermione could. Hermione made them all feel like scum for thinking anything bad about her friend. An envelope appeared in front of her, and Draco knew what was inside. She was a true ally of the Malfoy family.

Lavender looked suitably chastised for gossiping about Harry. Draco was ready to hear her apologize and forgive her, but then she noticed what Harry was wearing and said in her everyday happy, perky voice, "Wow, Harry, you're out of mourning. Does this mean you're available?"

"Give him space, Lav," Draco said, and he felt like a troll for being mean to his own girlfriend. But she still just didn't get it.

"Well, you tell me," she said with misplaced playfulness. "Is Harry looking for a special someone?"

"No, he only wants to save his father."

Everyone was still waiting for Harry's explanation, and Draco hated that Harry had to stop writing his letter to Victor and explain to everyone, "I have dissolved my family's alliance with the Diggorys. It would be an insult to Cedric's family for me to continue wearing mourning. Lavender, I am the most unavailable person in the world right now."

He set up his privacy wards again, this time not including Draco and Hermione, and even Lavender understood that his situation was serious. But now Draco wasn't interested in her apology. He was thinking about whether he should go to Bulgaria for Christmas with Harry and Hermione.

* * *

Dumbledore's Army met on the last day before Christmas holidays. Harry was in Professor Snape's private quarters working on his next owl to Voldemort. Snape had been conveniently instructed by Voldemort to 'keep an eye on young Harry', and so Harry and he were back to being favorite-professor/teacher's-pet. Now Snape was helping Harry conduct his negotiations with the Dark Lord over Lucius Malfoy's medical care and comfort in the Death Eaters' caves. Apparently it was unbearably damp, and Mr. Malfoy had caught a bad cold. That was more important to Harry than helping Draco and Hermione prepare spells to show to their club members. 

"Maybe we should cancel the meeting," Draco said, even though it would be a shame when the Room of Requirements had decorated itself so nicely and tastefully for the holidays. There was a decorated Christmas tree, holly garlands, green and red lights, and floating mistletoe. The meeting was scheduled to begin in ten minutes, and they had no idea what they would do.

"We could review the harder spells we've done recently," Hermione suggested, but she didn't sound very enthusiastic about such a boring plan.

"That's boring. People come because we always have something new and cool to show off. Haven't you read about anything cool that Harry hasn't heard of?"

"Reading is different from _doing_ the spells. Do you think it would be safe to do practice duels, or do we need a teacher for that?" They had already sent several students to the Infirmary from DA meetings, and Hermione tried to be more safety-conscious in her plans. The existence of the DA was still supposed to be secret.

Several people came into the Room of Requirement while Draco and Hermione were talking. Loony Luna Lovegood, the weird fourth year Ravenclaw with questionable fashion taste, came over to them and said, "You look troubled. I can help."

Draco didn't think that her knowledge of the hiding places of Crumple-Horned Snorkacks would be helpful for a DA meeting, but he didn't want to be mean. Besides, she was a Ravenclaw and that meant that, in spite of her bizarre superstitions and radish earrings, she was clever. As the (unofficial) leader of Dumbledore's Army, he should be open to suggestions from his followers. "How?" he asked.

"I can show you magic that Harry Malfoy can't do. It's pure Light arts. My father taught me."

Draco didn't know much about the Light arts. The Potters were an old Light family, and they had big books in their library about Light magic, but Draco's dad said that it was only useful in very specific, special uses against Dark magic. James Potter learned the useful bits when he was training to be an auror, and he said that Draco would have no problem learning Light spells when he was older. "It's easy for Potters," he had said.

Hermione didn't like Luna Lovegood and she looked like she wanted to refuse Luna's help, but they still had nothing planned for the DA meeting. She asked, "What kind of magic can you show us? Harry told us that the Light arts aren't strong enough for battle or dueling with wizards." Harry had said many other snide things about how useless the Light arts were compared to the Dark arts, but he was biased.

"You don't use them to _hurt_ wizards," Loony Lovegood said, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. "You use the Light arts to defend wizards from Dark forces. My father taught me how to cast the 'Patronus'. It's the best defense against Dementors for Light wizards."

Draco had heard of the 'Patronus' from his parents and Uncle Sirius. There weren't many Dementors wandering around Godric's Hollow, but it was a useful way to send short messages faster than owl. "It's too hard for kids to do," Draco said, because that's what his parents always told him whenever he asked.

"Maybe Luna Lovegood is better at magic than you are," Hermione said, because she liked teasing Draco. She still didn't like the idea of learning advanced magic from Luna Lovegood.

It turned out that Draco's parents were wrong about the 'Patronus' being too hard. Draco had no problem at all with the spell. He got a corporal Patronus on his first try: a stag that looked like his dad in his animagus form. Cool. Just to show off, he used it to send a message to Harry in Professor Snape's rooms.

Everyone else found it very hard. Hermione only got some silvery light to appear. Lavender asked/ordered Draco to help her get the spell to work.

"What does Loony mean about a happy memory? What did you use?"

"Anything works. I thought about breakfast today, when Harry came in without his tie and transfigured a fork into a Gryffindor tie but then Professor Sprout told him not to steal silverware from the Great Hall and took away points." Seamus had complained about the lost points and Hermione had made Harry transform the tie back into a fork before he got into any more trouble, but Draco and Harry had laughed. It was a brief happy moment, and there hadn't been many of those with Harry since Mr. Malfoy had been captured by Voldemort.

Lavender tried the spell again and nothing happened. "That was a really happy memory! Did I pronounce it wrong?"

"It sounded fine to me." Draco tried a more boring memory – yesterday's History of Magic class lecture on yet another goblin war – and another corporal Patronus appeared. "Maybe I'm happy enough all the time for all my memories to work." He tried a very sad memory – Harry crying when he heard that his father was captured by Voldemort – and, once again, there was the Patronus. "Or maybe I'm a magical genius."

"You're such a show-off, Draco Potter," Lavender said, and Draco knew she wasn't really annoyed with him.

A silver doe Patronus came through the closed door of the Room of Requirement and walked straight to Draco. It opened its mouth and said in Professor Snape's voice, "Harry congratulates you on your Patronus. Now leave him alone and let him do his real work while you play your kids games." It was funny to hear Snape's deep voice coming from the gentle, pretty, sparkling doe, but you didn't choose your guardian spirits. Snape was a Dark wizard and he could do a Patronus, so perhaps Harry would be able to learn, too.

"It would be so cool if Harry could produce a Patronus," Draco said to Lavender, because he had to tell someone. "Then we could send messages to each other all the time, even when he's in Bulgaria next week."

Hermione and Ron were practicing next to Draco and Lavender, and Ron heard Draco's last remark. "I thought Harry was staying at Hogwarts with you, Hermione," he said, and Draco knew he was going to have to apologize a lot to Hermione and Harry for telling their secret. He felt like an awful, untrustworthy person, then he tried to do a 'Patronus' while feeling rotten and it still worked. Maybe he really was a magical genius. He sent his Patronus to Harry again, just to annoy Snape.

"Do you think I could send a Patronus to Mr. Malfoy?" Draco asked Lavender. "Just to tell him that Harry's all right and he's trying to save him? Is there a way to keep them out of somewhere?" He would ask Hermione, but she was now trying to explain to Ron why she was spending the entire Christmas holidays in Bulgaria with Victor Krum.

Lavender groaned and said, "Why do we always end up talking about Harry Malfoy? He's not here. Can't you think of anyone else for five minutes?"

Draco laughed, and then he noticed that Lavender wasn't laughing with him. "Come on, Lav, don't be like that. You know what's going on with him." (Lavender muttered something like, "Because you always talk about it," but Draco didn't hear clearly and didn't ask her to repeat what she said.) "If I didn't think about Harry now, I'd be the worst friend in the world. He needs me." Draco conjured another Patronus and sent another message to Harry, asking whether he thought it would be a good idea to send a message to Mr. Malfoy by Patronus.

"If you send any more stags out of this room, Draco, someone is going to come in and find us," Hermione scolded, then she went back to yelling at Ron for not trusting her to look after herself, even when visiting Eastern European pureblood Dark wizards not known for their hospitality towards muggle-borns.

Lavender tried and failed to produce a Patronus, and that was probably why she was in such a bad mood. "Why didn't Hermione or you tell Ron about visiting Victor Krum before now? It's not nice to him. I hate the way Hermione Granger treats him."

Draco was surprised that Lavender seemed to care so much about Hermione and Ron's weird relationship that wasn't officially supposed to be a relationship. Draco thought that everyone knew that Hermione loved Ron in her weird way. Maybe Lavender didn't know Hermione well enough to see that.

Draco said, "Harry wants to keep their Bulgaria plans a secret until they're gone. I really shouldn't have said anything. Hermione wasn't allowed to tell people about it, either. She hasn't even told her parents."

"She hasn't told her parents? Doesn't she realize that it's _dangerous_ for her to go to Bulgaria?" Lavender said, just as Ron had been saying earlier.

"Harry will be there, and so will Victor Krum. Hermione will be safe. Do you want to try 'Patronus' again?"

Lavender ignored Draco's attempt to change the topic. She would rather argue. "I know you think that Harry Malfoy is the greatest wizard since Merlin, but that doesn't mean that you and Hermione have to do everything that he tells you to do. There are other people in the world who you should think about sometimes."

Draco knew that she was talking about herself, and he knew she was being unreasonable, because he was a perfect boyfriend. He sat next to her at meals and in many of his classes. (He would fail Potions if he didn't work with Harry, and he would never stay awake in History of Magic if he didn't sit next to Hermione.) He invited her to come watch their Quidditch practices, because he knew she liked watching big, sweaty Quidditch players. Occasionally they studied together. They kissed all the time, whenever she wanted to, which was very often. What could she complain about?

Draco tried a different tactic: the serious, somber truth. He said in a low voice, "Harry really, really needs us. He's sending owls to Voldemort! Lucius Malfoy is a nasty piece of work, but he's Harry's father and Harry will go crazy if anything happens to him. We don't want another insane Dark wizard in the world."

"So you'll do whatever he says until he makes you put on white masks and kill muggles?" She wasn't making a joke, and Draco didn't laugh.

"Hermione and I are looking after him." Draco didn't like thinking about the possibility of Harry Malfoy turning into the next Dark Lord, and Harry would be furious if he knew that Draco was even thinking about it. He was glad that Lavender had listened and now looked like she was thinking about what he said.

"This is the way it's going to be?" she asked. "Harry first, then everyone else?"

Oh fuck, this was going to be the end of his wonderful uncomplicated, fun relationship with Lavender Brown, wasn't it? Draco felt a moment of panic, when he saw how serious Lavender was, and he knew that she was going to dump him in front of the entire DA. What would Harry think when he heard?

How could he save the situation? Tell her that she was just as important to him as Harry was? She would know that he was lying. Then what else could he do? Use the magic words that made all girls swoon: 'I love you'? No, he couldn't say that. They were magic words to him, too. He loved to hear her laugh, and he loved to know that she chose him to be her boyfriend, and he loved kissing her, but he was not 'in love' with her, whatever 'in love' meant, and she was not 'in love' with him.

"You're important to me, too. So is Hermione and my parents and Uncle Sirius and the Weasleys and my other friends." He hoped he sounded noble, but he felt awful for hurting Lavender like this.

"Harry first?"

"Yes. I'm sorry."

This could have been a mature, calm, dignified end to a good relationship, with no tears or resentment, if they had been lucky to live in a world without Professor Snape. Harry had received Draco's messages while in Snape's quarters, and now Snape's Patronus returned with a response.

"Don't be stupid, Potter. Sending unauthorized messages to Lucius Malfoy would break the conditions of captivity and allow the Dark Lord to treat him as his prisoner to torture and maim as he saw fit. Harry wouldn't like that, and then you'd never have a chance to see him naked again, you naughty boy."

Professor Snape was an evil bastard! He was never, ever going to let Draco forget about his embarrassing Occlumency lessons that ended with images of Harry Malfoy naked in the bath. And now everyone in the DA had heard Snape's message. Draco was blushing, and he really, really didn't know what he was supposed to say. It was just a joke! Even worse, Snape must have sent the message in front of Harry.

"It's a joke," Draco said. "Snape's being a bastard, you know? … He hates me, and now he's trying to embarrass me … and he's succeeding. … Come on, Lav, you know it's a joke."

She would have laughed, if the message hadn't come when they were arguing about Harry. "Harry first," she repeated now, and she sounded and looked as if Draco really was having an illicit affair with Harry, and Draco was blushing, as if his secret had been found out.

Now everyone else in the DA saw that Lavender and Draco were acting atypically seriously and they looked oddly unhappy together. And so their friends were putting together all the pieces and making the shocking, incorrect realization that Draco was cheating on Lavender with Harry Malfoy.

"No, it's not like that," Draco said. "Harry wouldn't - and I wouldn't – we're not – Don't bring Harry into this. This isn't about him."

"I'm not stupid, Draco. Everything is always about him."

"Not that – I mean, well – don't be mad, Lav."

The Room of Requirement knew that something more was needed: a diversion. A bunch of mistletoe appeared over Lavender's head.

"Hey, mistletoe," Draco said, but he didn't know whether he was supposed to step forward to kiss his pretty ex- or soon-to-be ex-girlfriend.

Before he could, Lavender grabbed Ron Weasley and gave him a very un-platonic kiss. Once he got over his surprise, Ron was a rather enthusiastic participant in that un-platonic kiss.

Fuck. Draco had just been dumped by his wonderful girlfriend, and Hermione was going to kill him for it.

At dinner Lavender and Ron were sitting together on the far end of the table, and Hermione wasn't speaking to Draco. Harry received several letters from his allies that he needed to respond to immediately, but he could see that all was not well in Gryffindor house. He asked, "How did the DA meeting go?"

Draco didn't want to tell Harry what happened, especially not the part about Snape's message. Hermione didn't want to talk about Ron Weasley because she never acknowledged that Ron was anything more than a 'friend'. Draco waited for Hermione to say something, and Hermione waited for Draco to say something. Harry said, "Well, should I ask Lavender and Ron how the meeting went?"

Draco wasn't going to speak first. Neither was Hermione. Harry looked at Draco and then Hermione, and he said, "Neville, what happened?"

"Nothing happened," Hermione said, because they were not going to let Neville Longbottom tell the truth. "Right, Draco?"

"Right."

Harry was now intrigued. That wasn't good at all. "Neville, why are Ron and Lavender not sitting with us?"

Like the majority of the students at Hogwarts, including many Gryffindors, Neville Longbottom was scared of Harry Malfoy, and Harry knew it. Harry smiled in an unfriendly, threatening way, and Neville had to tell him the truth. "Lavender was angry at Draco for … well, and then she kissed Ron under mistletoe." Luckily Neville was not a very articulate person, and that version of the truth was not as embarrassing as it could have been.

"Are you going to add anything to that?" Harry asked Hermione and Draco.

Draco couldn't lie to Harry. "I told Ron that Hermione and you were going to Bulgaria. I'm really sorry. That's why he's angry with Hermione."

"Lavender dumped Draco because she was jealous about how much he worries about you," Hermione said. Thankfully she did not mention the part when everyone in the DA decided that Harry and Draco were secretly lovers.

Harry didn't laugh, like Draco was afraid he was going to. He looked surprisingly upset. "I'm so sorry," he said. "It's all my fault, and I was too focused on my problems to notice. I didn't mean for anything like this to happen. You are both much better friends than I deserve."

"Hey, now we have more time to help you," Draco said. It wasn't a very good joke, and no one laughed. "You're my best friend, and Lavender knew that before we started dating. If I had to choose between Lavender and you, I'd choose you every time."

"And if Ron is going to be a stupid, stubborn jerk about me visiting Victor, then maybe I don't want to have to listen to him," Hermione said. "The stupid, stubborn jerk. I hope he's happy."

"With Lavender," Draco added.

"You think they'd really – I mean, fine. Good riddance. I'm not upset. It doesn't matter." Hermione stood up and said, "I'm not hungry anymore," and she walked very quickly out of the hall. Draco wondered whether he should go after her, or whether she'd rather be alone to cry.

"It's my fault," Harry repeated.

"That's bollocks and you know it. Hermione hurt Ron because she's spending the Christmas hols with Victor and she won't even admit that she really likes Ron, and I hurt Lavender because she wanted more attention than I gave her. I deserved what I got, and so did Hermione."

Harry and Hermione flooed to Bulgaria early the next morning, before Harry could hear that everyone in the school wanted to know whether Draco and Harry were officially dating now.


	15. Hogwarts Year 5, pt 5

Chapter 15 – Hogwarts Year 5, pt 5

Draco-as-Voldemort sat at the head of a long table that held a traditional Christmas feast: goose, brussel sprouts, roasted potatoes, plum pudding. Voldemort did not have a plate in front of him, only a goblet with a dark red liquid that was probably not a new type of eggnog. At the foot of the table, about fifteen feet away, was Lucius Malfoy, dressed in a shabby set of Malfoy dress robes. He looked terrible. His skin was a sickly yellowish white, his eyes were bloodshot, his hair limp, loose, and tangled around his shoulders. He slouched. He barely had the strength to hold up his head.

Draco-as-Draco tried to remember everything he could of Mr. Malfoy's condition to tell Harry, but Draco-as-Voldemort did not care about Lucius's well-being. The traitor needed to be punished. Voldemort had to follow the strict rules for Captivity in front of his pureblood followers, so he found creative ways to punish and humiliate Malfoy, like forcing him out of bed while seriously ill, not giving him adequate time to prepare himself to be seen in public, then not letting him eat.

Lucius Malfoy looked hungry, but he would not be allowed to eat without his host's permission. He had not been given a full, proper meal since he arrived. It was part of his punishment. Had a Malfoy ever starved to death?

"Thank you for joining me, Lucius. I invited another guest tonight. Snape should bring us news about your son. Isn't that a wonderful Christmas present?"

"That is not necessary, my lord," Lucius said. Draco-as-Draco was surprised that Mr. Malfoy called Voldemort 'my lord', even after all that had happened, but Draco-as-Voldemort was pleased that Lucius showed the respect expected from a Death Eater, even a traitorous one.

The doors opened and Snape came in, wearing his black Death Eater robes. He had removed the mask, and Draco could see Snape's shock and surprise at seeing Lucius Malfoy out of bed and looking so terrible. But he knew his place, and he did not say anything to Malfoy, the disgraced captive. He bowed to Voldemort and kneeled to take his orders.

"Please take a seat at our Christmas feast," Voldemort said. He would have smiled if his face was still capable of such human facial expressions. Snape did as he was told, and he nervously sat down at the table mid-way down the table. He looked again at Mr. Malfoy, showing his concern but making no comment. He was not in a position to help Mr. Malfoy.

Lucius looked at the food in front of them instead of at his companions. He was too weak to hide that he was very, very hungry, in addition to being ill, dirty, and tired. The only downside to this punishment was that Lucius was not aware of how low he had sunk. He was too focused on survival to feel ashamed.

Voldemort said, "Severus, please tell us about young Harry. Where is he spending his holidays?" Lucius was extra-uncomfortable whenever Voldemort talked about Harry. That made Voldemort even more curious about the Boy-who-lived.

"He requested an international floo connection to Sofia, Bulgaria. He told his classmates that he would be staying with Victor Krum's family in Bulgaria."

"How charming, our old friends the Krums," Voldemort said. "Blood traitors, double-crossers, and now they are after your boy, Lucius. It is a very risky trip for Harry. Is Harry alone, or did he take along his trusty sidekicks, little Draco and the Mudblood?"

"Only Hermione Granger, the mudblood. Draco Potter is spending his holidays at home in Godric's Hollow."

Draco-as-Draco wished Snape would shut up about where Draco Potter was. Draco didn't want Voldemort to be reminded of Draco's existence at all. He never wanted to see Voldemort again, and he hoped that Dumbledore or Harry's allies would defeat him before he had a chance to try again to kill Draco. But Draco couldn't affect Voldemort's thoughts in these visions. He could only experience and react to the strongest of them.

Voldemort said, "How disappointing for Dumbledore. I thought he was hoping for a wedding before New Year's. What do you think of Harry and little Draco, Lucius?"

Lucius Malfoy fell off his chair and onto the floor unconscious. Voldemort was pleased. The vision ended.

* * *

Snape was led into the room surrounded by other Death Eater guards. Draco-as-Voldemort had been hoping and waiting for Snape to get caught. His patience had been rewarded. 

One of the guards said, "My lord, Snape was caught trying to enter Malfoy's rooms. He was using the back door from the servant's stairs. We think it was not the first time he used that entry."

The guard would be punished later for being an idiot and not realizing sooner that there was an unguarded entrance to Lucius Malfoy's rooms. Now it was Snape's turn to be reminded who was the master and who was the groveling servant.

"What is that you are holding, Severus?" Voldemort asked.

"It is nothing of importance, my lord," Snape lied. Voldemort could sense the lie in his thoughts, but Snape's Occlumency was too strong for Voldemort to be able to see the truth he was obstructing with his lie.

"Give it to me."

It was a potion, of course. Voldemort lacked the sense of smell, but he examined the color, viscosity, texture, then deemed it safe enough to test a small drop by taste. And then he knew what it was.

"A strength-replenishing potion, how thoughtful of you, Severus. I am feeling a bit tired today. This will do nicely."

He drank it and felt a powerful shock in his body. This was no ordinary strength-replenishing potion. It was designed to bring Lucius Malfoy back to life. Snape was far too intelligent to be allowed to be disloyal.

"My compliments, Severus," Voldemort said. "You will be required to brew me another dose every morning." An ordinary strength-replenishing potion would take many hours to prepare. Snape's improved version would take even longer to produce a single dose. This would be Snape's punishment. That and a bout of Cruciatus. The vision ended as Snape began to scream.

* * *

The vision was again in the banquet hall. There was only a loaf of bread on the table this time, and goblets in front of the two seated at the table. Draco-as-Voldemort was at the head of the table, and Lucius Malfoy was at the foot. Mr. Malfoy looked slightly better. At least he was dressed properly this time in Malfoy dress robes and his hair was cleaned, brushed, and tied back. 

Voldemort raised his goblet for a toast and waited until Lucius slowly grasped his own goblet and raised it, too. He was still alarmingly weak. Snape had not tried again to give him any healing potions, but he needed them. He was still being punished.

"What shall we drink to, Lucius? To Harry." Voldemort liked to see Lucius's expression of panic and fear that he was too weak to suppress. Voldemort waited for Lucius to repeat, "To Harry", then they both drank. Lucius started to cough, and Voldemort was momentarily afraid that he had miscalculated and put too much Veritaserum in Lucius's drink. He didn't want Malfoy to be too ill to be questioned.

"Your son met with the von Zauberstabs in Bratislava today," Voldemort said. "He was told that you would be abducted and taken away from here if he married into their family. Zenovia or Stanislav, it doesn't matter which of the von Zauberstab children he would have to marry. Do you know how the von Zauberstabs would have gained access to you?"

"They have strong ties to the Hexenheims and the Schwarzherzes. Anton Hexenheim and Gutrune Schwarzherz have been welcomed back here, although the rest of their families have not publicly allied themselves to you. Given the proper incentive, like the Malfoy fortune, they could turn on you." The words slid out quickly and smoothly, spoken as soon as the thoughts formed in Lucius's mind. After the initial shock and horror at what he was saying had passed, he knew what had happened. In a surprisingly calm and even voice, he said, "How much Veritaserum did you give me? That is not permitted by the laws of hospitality that apply to captives as well as other guests."

Draco-as-Voldemort had expected more fighting and anger from Lucius. He was becoming resigned to his position and his punishments. Excellent.

Voldemort said, "We are sharing a friendly drink, Lucius. I drank from the same bottle as you, therefore this is not considered coerced questioning." It was a necessary risk, but Voldemort was confident that he could out-smart and out-talk Lucius Malfoy and prevent himself from revealing any information that Lucius should not know. "In case you are curious, your son declined the offer from the von Zauberstabs because it would require breaking the traditional rules of captivity. Unfortunately for you, Harry has a strong sense of family honor."

Lucius was not interested in his son's courtships. He had other priorities: "What do you want with me?"

"You did not need to wait for me to drink Veritaserum to tell you that, Lucius. I want to punish you until you beg me to allow you to rejoin my followers. Now for another question. What is the full prophecy about Draco Potter and me?"

"I have never heard it. I have only been told that it is about how he will defeat you." Lucius Malfoy knew more than he was sharing, of course, but there was still plenty of time for Voldemort to extract the full truth from him. Or he would get the damn prophecy himself.

Lucius said, "What about my son? What do you plan to do about him?"

"Either he will join me, or he will be destroyed. He is dangerous, and I will not allow Albus Dumbledore to use him against me. If given an opportunity, from the von Zauberstabs or whomever else, will you escape from here and destroy your family honor?"

"Yes. I would do anything to escape. I don't want to join you. I am dying."

Now the Veritaserum was only an excuse for them to tell each other exactly what they wanted to say, without the politeness and caution that they usually employed in their conversations. Lucius Malfoy could tell Voldemort he hated him, and Voldemort could tell him that he was a little bug who couldn't hurt him no matter how he tried.

"You are being punished. If you do not support me, then it is better for me that you die. Has Snape visited you in your rooms since Christmas Eve?"

"No. You will not permit me to have any visitors. You will not permit me to eat except in your presence. I cannot communicate directly with my family. Harry will never join you if you do not treat me decently. I need a healer."

"And I need _loyal_ supporters. I would say that you have a choice, but we know you don't. You made that choice years ago. Your family made it for you, and you have made it for young Harry. You are all mine."

* * *

Draco Potter's Christmas holidays sucked. He stayed at Godric's Hollow with his parents and Uncle Sirius. Sirius Black owned several houses, estates, and a castle, but he always spent the holidays with the Potters. 

Narcissa thought that Draco should be studying more for his OWLs. She warned, "The only Black who failed to get at least five O's on his OWLs was Sirius, and you see how poorly he turned out."

"I'm a Potter, though, and Potters only care about Quidditch. You've said so thousands of times."

It was dangerous to tease Mrs. Narcissa Black Potter when she was discussing family pride. Even though her sister Bellatrix was an insane Death Eater and her cousin was Sirius, she was very, very proud of the Black family.

"Unless Sirius has a legally bonded spouse and a legitimate son hidden away in one of his estates that he never visits, you will be the next Lord Black, and you will be a disgrace to us all unless you get good marks. If you even think about flying before you've spent three hours revising your Astronomy, I'll lock up your broom for the rest of the week. I am a Legilimens, and I am your mother. I can always tell what you are thinking."

Her threats were real, and her commands were always obeyed, even when they were really, really boring commands. Astronomy was for people who couldn't see the future in tea leaves and crystal balls. Star charts required too much geometry and math, and they were really, really boring.

The current Lord Black was not making much progress towards finding a legally bonded spouse or having an heir or two. When he wasn't nagging Narcissa about their Christmas decorations ("They're all too boring and tasteful," he said) or flying with Draco, Sirius was at the Ministry with James working on a big case that would bring them fame, riches, and glory. Those important visits to the Ministry always concluded with Sirius and James crashing Ministry departmental Christmas parties and returning home late smelling of mulled wine and wearing silly paper hats. At least they were having fun during their Christmas holidays. Draco wasn't.

Draco was bored. He couldn't visit Lavender because she had cruelly dumped him, he couldn't visit the Weasleys because Ron had heartlessly stolen his girlfriend, and he couldn't visit his other Hogwarts friends because they would tease him about his non-existent romance with Harry Malfoy. (Even Voldemort thought that Harry and Draco were dating. How embarrassing!) He couldn't write to Harry or Hermione while they were away visiting Dark wizards in Central Europe. Harry had told Draco before they left that he wanted to trust that his allies would respect his privacy, but he didn't want to tempt them by sending and receiving personal messages from their estates.

The only excitement in Draco's days came from being outraged by the 'Daily Prophet'. Every mistake the Ministry of Magic had made in the last ten years was now blamed on Lucius Malfoy. Every disgraced politician now confessed to be working under Lucius Malfoy's instructions. Every day the newspaper uncovered another nefarious plot within the Ministry that resulted in more of Lucius Malfoy's supporters being forced out of office and, often, thrown into prison. It was all lies.

Sirius and James laughed and laughed at the obviously faked pictures and ridiculous conspiracy theories. Narcissa quietly enjoyed the Malfoy family's misfortunes. Draco wrote angry letters to the editor that were never printed, and he worried about how the lies would affect the Malfoys. Mr. Malfoy probably didn't have permission to read the 'Daily Prophet' in Voldemort's remote hide-out in the Orkney Islands. Harry would find a way to read the paper wherever he was, but Draco would have to wait until after Christmas holidays to hear Harry's reaction.

Mrs. Lily Malfoy was the only one who could publicly defend the family from the lies, and she did it well. She sent the family's lawyers after the 'Daily Prophet', and when that didn't stop the lies being published, she changed tactics and started giving major scoops to other newspapers and magazines about her husband's courageous struggles against Voldemort. 'The Quibbler' published a lengthy interview with Mrs. Malfoy about her husband's captivity and the implications that had for the Malfoy family.

"The Malfoy family will continue to fight against the Dark Lord," she said, "even if that means facing my husband in battle. The Dark Lord is punishing my family, and I don't expect him to be merciful."

Draco wrote to Professor Dumbledore about his Voldemort visions, and he told his parents and Sirius about what he saw. That didn't make James, Sirius, or Narcissa any more sympathetic towards Mr. Malfoy's situation or Professor Snape's brave acts of friendship, but they managed to pass all the important details to Mrs. Malfoy. She sent Draco very nice Christmas presents.

The Potters' annual New Year's Eve party was an appropriately miserable end to Draco's miserable holidays. Uncle Sirius invited Remus Lupin, even though Draco's mother still didn't like Remus, and Remus came with a date! Draco hadn't realized that he knew that Sirius liked Remus in a more-than-friends way until he saw Remus with his unacceptable date. It was so obvious. Didn't Remus know?

Sirius spent most of the evening getting drunk with Draco's incredibly cool cousin, Nymphadora Tonks. She was a Metamorphmagus, and that made her awesome. Draco's mum didn't acknowledge that Nymphadora was a relative, because her mother, Aunt Andromeda, had been removed from the Black family tree before Draco was born. Now Cousin Dora worked as an auror with James and Sirius, and she was invited to the party as a friend. She also knew Remus, and she also thought he was fabulously wonderfully great, and thus she was the one who kept Sirius company with the fire whiskey.

"He could have told us that he was bringing someone," Sirius whined. "It's damned inconsiderate of him."

"And she's so boring!" Dora said. "If Remus is rejecting us, he should reject us for someone better."

The unacceptable date was a bookish, quiet, polite woman who was nothing at all like Sirius or Dora. Draco thought she was a good match for Remus, but he didn't say that. Instead he asked whether he could try fire whiskey, and Sirius was not yet drunk enough to let him.

Another awkward guest was Bill Weasley. He had spent the holidays with his family and had heard all the latest Hogwarts gossip. He asked James and Narcissa what they thought about Draco's new boyfriend.

"What happened to his girlfriend? I thought he had a girlfriend," James said, and Bill Weasley informed him that Draco's ex-girlfriend Lavender Brown was now dating Bill's little brother Ron.

"Miss _Brown_ was never worthy of a _Black_, anyway," Draco's mum said, but that may have been just a joke about her last name instead of any great support for her son.

Uncle Sirius was still sober enough to eavesdrop on other people's conversations. He grabbed Draco's arm and told him, "There was a cute Ravenclaw in my year, Julia White, but I never tried to ask her out because of the name. White and Black, it wouldn't work."

Draco tried to escape Sirius's grip so he could drag Bill Weasley away from his parents before he could tell them any more Hogwarts gossip, but then Dora took his other arm. "I knew a cute White, too. He wasn't anything like Remus. He was shorter."

"Remus was taller than my White, too."

Meanwhile Bill was telling Draco's parents the name of Draco's new boyfriend. And then everyone was laughing, even Draco's mum.

"How sweet," she said. "It will be just like Romeo and Juliet, especially the ending, when I kill them."

James was more supportive of the idea. "How high should we set Draco's bride price? Ten million galleons? Twenty?"

Everyone had had a lot to drink by that time.

"It's no big deal," Draco said. "It's just a rumor. It's not true. Really. It's not true at all. Harry's not my boyfriend. I don't fancy him. We're just friends. That's all we ever will be. Really."

Then Sirius decided that Draco deserved fire whiskey for his broken heart – though it was not clear whether his heart was broken because Lavender was not his girlfriend or because Harry was not his boyfriend.

On the next morning, after everyone had had his or her hangover cures, no one mentioned Draco's supposed boyfriend. That was dismissed as another drunken story.

* * *

Finally, at last, it was time to return to school. Harry and Hermione were traveling by international floo directly to Hogwarts. Draco sat with the Weasleys on the Hogwarts Express and talked about Quidditch for the entire trip and ignored all Harry-related jokes. It seemed like most of the Gryffindors wanted to ask him about Harry. 

"I don't fancy Harry, and Harry doesn't fancy me," Draco said again and again and again. He didn't know or care whether people believed him. It was the truth.

Ron apologized for stealing Draco's girlfriend, and Draco reassured him that he would not take his revenge and kick Ron off the Quidditch team. Girlfriends and boyfriends come and go, but Quidditch is forever.

There was a note on Draco's bed from Harry telling him to meet Hermione and him in the library as soon as he arrived. "Skip dinner. Come at once."

Two weeks was a long time to be away from your best friends. Hermione had changed her hair. Instead of wearing her long, curly hair tied back out of her way, she wore it down. The curls looped around her shoulders and down her back. The library's candlelight brought out red and gold highlights in the mousy brown that Draco had never noticed before. She must have learned some very advanced hair magic in Eastern Europe.

"Wow, I love your hair, Hermione," Draco said, and she actually blushed. Her complexion also looked better, more peaches-and-cream than studying-all-day-and-never-seeing-daylight-pale. The witch had finally learned some subtle cosmetic spells! Draco could almost imagine what Victor Krum and Ron Weasley saw in her. With a bit more effort and better clothes, she had the potential of being a very good-looking woman.

"You don't think it's too much?" she asked. "I saw Ron when I was coming here, and he didn't say anything – not that it matters what _he_ thinks – but… I don't want people to think that I'm trying too hard to compete with the other girls and look, you know, pretty."

"If anyone says that, you can hex them with something they never heard of," Draco said.

He sat down across from Hermione, next to Harry. Harry was not as obviously changed as Hermione. He looked too thin and pale, but he always was too thin and pale. He seemed more calm than when he had left for Christmas. He no longer looked like he was one step away from doing something absurdly rash and reckless to save his father. That must mean that things went well in Central Europe. He was wearing his Malfoy dress robes instead of a school uniform, which reminded Draco of his Voldemort visions with poor Mr. Malfoy, but he would wait to discuss his visions. Now he was happy to see his friend looking better than he had looked before.

"I love your hair, too, Harry," Draco said, because 'Happy New Year' or 'I missed you' would be out of place.

Harry smiled and said, "Thanks." He smiled at Draco a little longer than was necessary for the hair comment, maybe because he was noticing all the little changes in Draco since they left for the holidays. Ron Weasley was going through another growth spurt, and Draco had to buy a new set of school robes over the holidays. Draco assumed that Harry was noticing his new clothes, because there was nothing else new or interesting about Draco to be worth looking at. Draco knew that he was a very good-looking individual, especially now that he was tall, but he wasn't going to hold his breath waiting for Harry to notice.

"What's more important than dinner?" Draco asked. "I hear it's roasted chicken tonight."

Time to get to business. Harry set up super-strong privacy wards around the deserted library, and they began their important, serious discussion. First, Hermione gave Draco an overview of their trip. They traveled with Victor Krum, and together they stayed in houses of the Malfoys' most trusted allies in Bulgaria, Romania, Slovakia, and Austria.

"How did you have time to go to so many places?" Draco asked. "Did you take a break to sleep? Did you remember to open Christmas presents?"

This was apparently a controversial topic for Hermione and Harry. She glared at Harry, and Harry looked a bit but not very embarrassed. Harry said, "Bulgaria doesn't regulate time-turners like England does. Victor helped me buy three more on the black market."

That sounded like the most irresponsible and stupid idea in the world. Time-turners were regulated for a very good reason. Draco heard the stories about witches and wizards using time-turners to go back in time over and over again to try to fix their mistakes and change their lives. It was a dangerous temptation.

Seeing Draco's alarmed reaction, Hermione said, "I never used them, and I told Harry not to."

Harry saw no need to apologize. "I needed the extra time to meet with everyone I needed to see in the East. It worked, and everyone except Hermione was very impressed that I could pull it off."

"How much extra time did you use?" Draco asked.

"Nearly two _months_," Hermione said. "It was incredibly confusing for everyone. Harry had to have house elves with him at all times to keep him from seeing his other selves. Then there were all the messages! Harry 2 and Harry 3 would send contradicting messages to Harry 1 and Harry 1 would send someone to ask Harry 4 what he should do. No one ever knew which Harry would turn up at a meal." Hermione's newly discovered feminine side did not prevent her from showing her temper and yelling at Harry for past crimes. Harry still didn't look contrite.

"Besides the reckless misuse of dangerous magical artifacts, did the trip go well?" Draco asked. "Did you find anyone who can help you save your dad, Harry, besides the Zauberstabs?"

Harry and Hermione wanted to know how Draco knew about the von Zauberstabs, and so Draco described his visions for them. He didn't need to consult the notes he had made immediately after he had them. He wished he could forget how awful they were, but he vividly remembered every single detail.

"Voldemort thinks that you and Harry are dating?" Hermione asked, horrified and amused by that part of the first vision.

"He asked Snape for the Hogwarts gossip, and, well, that's what people say…" Draco did his very best not to look or sound embarrassed by the topic.

Harry said, "The Dark Lord was teasing my father. That's a good sign. If he wanted to hurt Father, he knows plenty of hexes. And we know that he's human enough to make jokes."

"Do you think he's right about Professor Dumbledore?" Draco asked. "Do you think the Headmaster really wants Harry and I to… um… be a couple?" He knew that he sounded ridiculously bashful, but he still wanted to kill Hermione for laughing. Harry grinned, but he saw how uncomfortable Draco was with the subject and did not laugh.

"I think it's Dumbledore's fondest dream," Harry said. "He could bind the Malfoys to his side through ties of love, or some other sentimental nonsense like that. That's how my father became a spy for him. If he really loved my mother, he was expected to face near-certain death for Dumbledore. In return, Dumbledore abandoned us and allowed the Death Eaters to burn down our home and capture my father. Dumbledore would love to use Draco to manipulate me, if he could. I'm not like my father."

Well. So that's the way Harry saw things. Fine. So be it. It was safe to assume that Harry wasn't going to be making 'Dumbledore's fondest dream' come true any time soon. Not that Draco was disappointed. Of course not.

Harry had the most questions about the third vision, with Mr. Malfoy and Voldemort chatting about Lucius's escape options while under the influence of Veritaserum.

"I wish you could have sent me a message about that one," Harry said. "That would have changed everything. I thought that Father would not allow himself to be freed dishonorably. I didn't realize how much he was suffering. I should have known."

Draco didn't think it would have been a good idea for Harry to marry into the von Zauberstab family to save his father. That sounded too medieval, even for the Malfoys.

Hermione was more openly appalled by Harry's regrets. "You can't trade yourself for your father's freedom. There may be other ways to save your father. Besides, you said that you didn't trust the von Zauberstabs. I didn't like them. They didn't say the word 'Mudblood', but I know they were thinking it when they met me. They didn't shake my hand, and they didn't ask after Harry's mother. Victor said that they had goblin blood, and they looked like it. Did you see their fingernails and their teeth?"

Harry laughed and conceded that their goblin-ish looks did influence his decision not to accept their proposal. Hermione and Harry discussed several of Harry's other rejected suitors during the trip; apparently every important Dark wizarding family in Central Europe had a son or daughter to offer to the Boy Who Lived. Harry turned everyone down, of course, because he needed his father's advice and approval before making any major commitment. Draco didn't like these rejected-suitor stories very much, even though they ended well.

"So, overall, you still haven't found a way to help your dad?" Draco asked. He was surprised that Harry and Hermione seemed to think that the trip went well if it failed in its primary goal of saving Mr. Malfoy.

Harry shook his head. "Only the von Zauberstabs offered, but if the Dark Lord knew about it and about the Hexenheims and the Schwarzherzes, I doubt they would succeed now. Father must serve the Dark Lord unless he is released through our ransom negotiations, which won't happen because I won't kill Dumbledore, or unless he is re-taken in battle. No one will raise an army to fight against the Dark Lord, not after my father tried and failed."

Draco was glad that Harry was able to consider the situation so calmly and rationally, but it also felt wrong. Harry was being too calm and too rational about his father. It wasn't like Harry to sit back and be resigned to let his father suffer. He was the most powerful young wizard in England, and probably already one of the most powerful wizards in the country. Harry should be doing more. But what else could he do? Lucius Malfoy had used all his family's strength and influence to fight against Voldemort, and he had lost.

The Malfoys were not the only enemies of Voldemort left in the wizarding world. Draco's parents wanted Voldemort defeated, dead, and destroyed forever. So did Uncle Sirius, the Weasleys, Cousin Dora, Remus, and all of his parents' other friends. The professors at Hogwarts would fight against the Death Eaters if they came to the school. For all its faults, the Ministry of Magic would fight a direct threat from Voldemort, too. And then there was Voldemort's greatest enemy, Professor Dumbledore.

Draco asked, "Did your parents tell you about the Order of the Phoenix, Harry?"

"Yes, of course. My mother was an active member, and Father was tolerated because he was married to her. He said it was a waste of time. He ended the war by himself, not because of anything Dumbledore planned or ordered."

Hermione, the muggle-born, didn't understand, and Harry and Draco told her about Dumbledore's secret society of hardcore anti-Voldemort fighters. She was impressed. "Why isn't it mentioned in any books?" she asked.

"Because it was a big secret and it may still exist," Draco said. Now he remembered his parents and Uncle Sirius's mysterious late night meetings during the summer and Christmas holidays. They said that they couldn't tell Draco where they went because of his alarming mental connection with Voldemort. Yes, of course, the Order of the Phoenix must be meeting again!

"Do you think the Order is big enough to fight against Voldemort?" Hermione asked. "How can we join it? Harry has been fighting against Voldemort since he was a baby, Draco was nearly killed by Voldemort last June, and I'm a muggle-born and your friend. Voldemort is already after us. If the Order of the Phoenix is fighting against Voldemort, we should be part of it."

"Yeah, we should definitely be allowed to join, but everyone will probably say that we're too young," Draco said. That was always his parents' excuse when he wanted to do something fun and dangerous. Even though Harry and Hermione didn't believe in Divination and prophecies, Draco knew that he was destined to be the only person capable of killing Voldemort. That should be enough too guarantee his membership in the Order of the Phoenix.

Harry had a different objection. "Dumbledore leads the Order, and I will never take an oath to serve him. If the Order still exists, why didn't Dumbledore send them to help my father fight against the Death Eaters at the Manor? Why won't he do anything now to save Father? I will only offer my allegiance to people who have earned it." Just to emphasize how much the subject bothered Harry, his accidental magic made the table shake loudly against the stone floor in the library for several seconds before Harry regained control over himself. He really hated the Headmaster.

Draco still knew that the Order of the Phoenix was the key to defeating Voldemort. "Snape is in the Order," he said, not that that meant much to him, but Harry idolized Snape. Snape was also the only person actively trying to help his father while in captivity.

"You offered a personal alliance to all of your father's old allies," Hermione said. "Professor Dumbledore was one of his allies. He could be useful. You should at least offer an alliance and listen to his conditions."

Hermione's reasoning sounded good to Draco, but Harry was looking at Draco while Hermione spoke. Still facing Draco, Harry asked, "Do you really want me to meet with Dumbledore about the Order?"

"Yes," Hermione said, and Draco nodded.

"Fine. Then I will."

------

(Author's note: Thanks for your reviews. I had problems with internet access at home, but now I should be back to posting semi-regularly.)


	16. Hogwarts Year 5, pt 6

Chapter 16 – Hogwarts Year 5, pt 6

Professor Dumbledore refused Harry Malfoy's first offer of an alliance. The gesture was appreciated, but Dumbledore's plans against Voldemort did not require any assistance from Harry Malfoy or any of his Dark allies. He did not explicitly state "Bugger off, you evil little snot", but it was strongly implied.

"I will never force anyone to accept my help," Harry said when he showed Dumbledore's response to Draco and Hermione. Harry had never liked the Headmaster, and he had not been enthusiastic about joining forces with Dumbledore and the Order of the Phoenix to defeat Voldemort, but he still felt insulted by Dumbledore's rejection.

"It must be a test," Draco said. "Dumbledore wants to know whether you're really serious about an alliance. You've never volunteered to help before. He must be suspicious."

Harry didn't look very convinced and neither was Draco himself, but Hermione liked the idea, or she couldn't think of a better one. "You're right, Draco! That must be it. Go offer him something valuable, Harry. Show him you're sincere."

"What choice do you have? Voldemort has your dad," Draco said, and Harry agreed with that.

Professor Dumbledore thanked Harry for the offer of private funds from the Malfoy family, but his forces did not require any external financial assistance.

Harry handed the response to Draco and asked, "Are you going to make me try again?"

"Yes," Draco said, although from the mildly insulting tone of Dumbledore's letter, the Headmaster was not expecting any more offers of alliance from Harry. "You are a student. The Headmaster has to treat you fairly and help you."

"Maybe he does if your last name is Potter," Harry said, but he still sent a third offer the next day, which was also promptly rejected. So was his fourth offer.

While Harry and the Headmaster exchanged owls, and while Harry and Voldemort continued to send happy messages filled with veiled threats and outrageous demands, the rest of the student body went to class, practiced Quidditch, and speculated about the Ron/Lavender/Hermione or Draco/Harry/Hermione love triangles. Harry didn't care about what other people said about him; as a Malfoy and as the Boy Who Lived, he expected people to talk about him. Hermione was too preoccupied with her O.W.L.s and Harry's problems to acknowledge the possibility of having a personal life. That left Draco alone to follow and respond to the new and exciting developments of his assumed love affair with Harry Malfoy.

"You're wrong," Draco told Padma and Parvati Patil. "Harry and I could never date. Our parents would kill us."

"How romantic," Parvati cooed.

"Light and Dark magic, blond and brown hair, happiness and tragedy, laughter and tears…" Padma sighed in contemplation of their perfect suitability.

Draco tried again. "Harry's too busy trying to save his father to remember that I exist when I'm not in front of him."

It was like talking to a brick wall. Padma sighed again and said, "You should see how he looks at you."

"It's so romantic," Parvati agreed.

On the way to Quidditch practice one day, Ginny Weasley asked Draco who asked whom out. Teen-age girls were all too nosy and obsessed with love and gossip. She said, "I can't imagine asking Harry Malfoy out in a million years – he's the Boy Who Lived! – but he doesn't seem like the sweet and sentimental type."

"He's not sweet and sentimental," Draco said, because that was true. That week Harry was helping one of his allies in Estonia bribe Muggle government officials to move a Muggle nursery away from his property because he claimed the babies were poisoning the air for wizards.

"So you asked him out? How? Was it scary?"

"Harry isn't scary once you get to know him."

"I've lived with him for four years. He's terrifying. He makes the first-years cry when they're too noisy in the common room." Well, that was true, too.

"He's not scary to me. I can ask him anything. He usually says no, but sometimes he says yes."

Ginny said that was the most romantic thing she had ever heard, showing her extreme gullibility and her very low standards when it came to romance.

Draco was almost alarmed by how easily he could half-lie about Harry and him. No one believed him when he said that he wasn't dating Harry, but people believed everything he said if he implied that they were semi-secretly a couple. The incorrect assumption did no harm, and Draco thought it was funny. His friends were going to look like fools when they found out the truth.

The Gryffindors were one-hundred-percent certain that Harry and Draco were secretly engaged. Lavender Brown claimed to have had her suspicions confirmed by horoscopes and a tarot card reading. The Ravenclaws thought that Hermione and Harry would end up together because they were intellectual equals. The Hufflepuffs hoped that Lavender and Draco would get back together because they were both so nice. The Slytherins thought that Harry Malfoy could have anyone and everyone he wanted, and if he wanted both Draco and Hermione, he would have them, maybe even at the same time.

Slytherins were creepy and twisted, and Draco disapproved of Harry spending one or two evenings a week in the dungeons. He said that he wanted to know the children of his allies and potential future allies. And he claimed that he enjoyed his visits here.

According to Harry and Pansy Parkinson, all the younger Slytherins idolized him: a powerful Dark wizard able to control Dark creatures, speak in Parseltongue, and defy both the Headmaster and the Dark Lord.

"The rest of us want to get into his pants," Pansy told Draco. "He's turned everyone down, as far as I can tell. Even Blaise Zabini, can you believe that? I told Malfoy that it's more fun to be seduced by Blaise than to resist. Blaise can be _very_ determined and very, very fun."

"That's great to know, Parkinson," Draco snapped, because he respected Harry's personal privacy and Pansy was a nosy, gossiping bint. If Harry wanted to shag all the Slytherins, Draco didn't want to hear about it, and if Harry did, he deserved to get some horrible venereal disease and become ugly and die.

"Nott showed Malfoy a book on Dark sex magic and suggested that Malfoy try out a few spells. Showing off an old rare book on restricted Dark magic was a good tactic for seducing Harry Malfoy, I think, don't you?" Pansy Parkinson was officially no longer one of Draco's friends.

Draco hated himself when he still said, "Well? What happened?"

Pansy knew she had won a great victory over Draco's dignity, and she had more good cheer to share. "Malfoy said that he had his own copy and he already had worked his way through the book last summer. We're all dying to hear who Harry Malfoy was with last summer. It wasn't you, was it?"

Pansy waited for Draco's furious denial, but he had already decided not to believe a word that any lying, evil Slytherin ever told him ever again. Last summer Harry was forced to hide in his awful muggle aunt's awful muggle house. He was not practicing sick Dark sex magic, definitely not.

When Draco got rid of Pansy and returned to the Gryffindor common room, he placed a one galleon bet with Fred and George Weasley at 10,000:1 that he would never, ever so much as kiss Harry Malfoy ever again. He lost that wager after the next Quidditch match. Gryffindor beat Slytherin, and after the post-match fist fight, Madame Umbridge banned Draco Potter and the Weasley twins from Quidditch for life. The ban was lifted two hours later, once Harry had spoken with her and promised her unimaginable delights for pleasing the Malfoy family. After too many alcoholic butterbeers at the raucous victory party, it seemed perfectly natural to snog Harry Malfoy for being such a good friend. Luckily Draco passed out before he could really make an arse of himself.

In February, Dumbledore rejected Harry's sixth offer of an alliance, and the 'Daily Prophet' reported that Lucius Malfoy had been spotted participating in a Death Eater raid in Ealing.

"Death Eaters wear masks during raids," Harry said when he saw the article, with no pictures and no named witnesses to back their accusations. "If Father were participating in a Death Eater raid, he would not be recognized. If he were recognized, he would not be there as a Death Eater. If he were free from the Dark Lord's captivity, he would not be in Ealing. Don't you agree, Draco?"

"Yes, certainly, no doubt," Draco said, because Harry looked like he was on the verge of getting very upset and there weren't many places where Draco could hide in the Great Hall if Harry began to lose control over his magic.

Ron Weasley said, "The 'Prophet' is full of lies," and Hermione scolded him for speaking with his mouth full.

Also during February, Lavender dumped Ron for Fred Weasley, then she dumped Fred Weasley for George Weasley. Ron failed to ask out Hermione. Harry received several dozen anonymous Valentines from young Slytherins. The Valentines from the older Slytherins were all signed and had pornographic messages that made Harry laugh. Draco didn't see why they were funny, and he seriously doubted whether some were anatomically possible. Madame Umbridge created an Inquisitional Squad to enforce her unenforceably crazy new school rules, and Gryffindor went into negative points within a week. Dumbledore's Army expanded. Hermione tried and failed to make Draco study more for his OWLs. Ron and Draco grew another inch.

In March, Harry changed his negotiating strategy with both Dumbledore and Voldemort. "I have been patient and reasonable, and Dumbledore has ignored me and the Dark Lord treats me like a child. They need to be reminded of who I am and what I can do," he told Draco and Hermione in the library one night.

"How can we help?" Draco asked.

Harry smiled, because that was the response he had been hoping for and expecting from his oldest, closest friend. "We are going to attack Voldemort and save my father."

Hermione immediately and loudly objected, of course. "That's impossible! We're only fifteen years old. You won't win." Luckily Harry had already set up powerful privacy wards around them, so Hermione would not be thrown out of her precious library sanctuary for being too loud.

"I won't be alone. I'll send for my allies and other wizards who would be willing to help. I'll hire mercenaries. It will be a big, organized assault on Voldemort's cave in the Orkney Islands. I won't lead the attack, but I'm going to participate and everyone will know that I'm fighting, like my father did."

The attack would be dangerous, maybe even suicidal, probably doomed to failure, and almost certainly illegal, but Draco thought it was a pretty good idea. It was exactly the sort of thing a Malfoy would do. The Ministry of Magic was doing nothing. Professor Dumbledore was slowly, cautiously, carefully preparing to foil Voldemort's plans and never telling anyone his own secret plans until they were ready to be carried out. The Malfoys showed off to the world that they were Dark, powerful, rich, ambitious, and now very angry.

Hermione said, "Your father fought and lost, remember? He sent for his allies, he hired mercenaries, and he had the ancestral wards at Malfoy Manor on his side. How can you expect to attack Voldemort's cave on a small, remote island and win?"

"It's more important to fight than to win at this point," Harry said. "Dumbledore won't attack the Dark Lord. The Dark Lord doesn't think I am a serious threat to him. I'll show them that they're wrong."

"It won't matter what they think about you if you're dead! This is all about your ego, isn't it? You think you deserve special treatment because you're Harry Malfoy, Mr. Boy-Who-Lived. You're going to get yourself killed, and we're not going to let you." Hermione was a loyal friend, a brilliant witch, and a good person, but she could be way too noisy and annoying when she was upset. Harry had already made up his mind about what he was going to do, and he needed Draco and Hermione to support him.

"How can we help?" Draco asked again.

Harry Malfoy looked at Draco as if he were the most amazing person in the world, and Draco felt like he was the most amazing person in the world, too, because of Harry. For a few seconds, Draco knew that he was very, very special.

"Thank you, Draco," Harry said quietly.

Then it was over, whatever the look Harry had had was gone, and Draco was confused but happy. Was Draco becoming convinced by his own half-lies that there was something more than there really was between Harry and him? Maybe he should place another bet with the Weasley twins. The last time he checked, there were 4:1 odds that Harry and Draco would be an official couple by April. Was that really so impossible?

But then on the next day Pansy Parkinson told Draco that she heard that Harry let himself be seduced by Zabini – "He's only human, after all" – and Draco asked the Weasley twins what odds they were offering for Draco never letting Harry near him ever again. ("We're trying to be bookies, not thieves," George had said, and he wouldn't let Draco make even a symbolic wager.) After moping for a couple hours, Draco decided he was acting stupid. It was all Pansy Parkinson's fault, and all Slytherins were evil. That made him feel better. He told Harry that Pansy was spreading rumors about him and Blaise Zabini, and Harry laughed. That meant that nothing was going on.

Harry sent out messages calling on all his allies to assist him in a direct attack on Voldemort's hide-out. He also sent owls to people he thought were in the Order to invite them to join in the attack.

Sirius Black was one of the first to agree. "Strike first and kill all the bastards," was his suggested battle plan. He brought Draco's cousin Dora Tonks and Draco's dad to the first planning meeting at Hogwarts. James Potter told everyone, especially his wife, that he was coming along to keep Sirius and Tonks out of trouble. Privately, James said that Harry's raid sounded like more fun than standing outside a locked door for the Order's 'guard duty'. Draco had had visions of the locked door and he knew it was an important door, but standing outside it didn't look like much fun, especially not when Mr. Arthur Weasley was nearly killed by a snake. That was the worst vision Draco had ever had, even worse than the graveyard visions from the fourth year, because he knew while he saw it that it was really happening now. Mr. Weasley almost died, but Draco was able to get help sent to him in time to save him.

Ivor Sorensen, a Dark wizard and the head of Denmark's auror department, was chosen to be the leader of the raid. Harry and Lily Malfoy paid for extra mercenaries. Everyone, including Dumbledore, Voldemort, the Ministry of Magic, and the 'Daily Prophet', knew that an attack was being planned, but all details regarding the size of their forces and the time and day they would attack were kept secret.

"No children allowed," Ivor declared from the very beginning. That meant that Draco and Hermione would not be going to the Orkney Islands. They were also excluded from all the planning meetings. Harry was not considered a child by his allies, and he was going to be in the front of the charge against Voldemort.

"My mother doesn't want me in the front line, but she will let me if she stands next to me. It's a bit embarrassing to have my mum there to hold my hand while I attack the Dark Lord."

"Will your father be there?" Draco asked. The 'Daily Prophet' had recently published another Lucius-Malfoy-as-a-Death-Eater sighting, but Voldemort still wrote to Harry calling Mr. Malfoy his captive. Snape hadn't seen Mr. Malfoy in weeks.

"I hope so," Harry said. "It will make capturing him and taking him home easier."

On the morning of the attack, Harry went to breakfast in the Great Hall dressed in his battle robes. He handed Professor Dumbledore another offer of his alliance. He kissed Hermione on the cheek and he hugged Draco, then he walked down to the Hogwarts apparition point to fight in his battle.

Draco didn't want to eat breakfast. He didn't want to go to Herbology class. He wanted to know what was happening in the Orkney Islands, and he wanted Harry to come back. Hermione started sniffling next to him. She was going to start crying soon.

"Harry is going to die," she said, before the real crying began.

"No, he isn't," Draco said. "I didn't have any visions about him dying. Irwin says that all really major events in life cause psychic ripples through time and space that some of us can sense. Harry's death will cause huge psychic waves, believe me."

"I have no idea what you're talking about. Harry listens to you, and he would have given up on this stupid idea if you hadn't told him you'd help."

"I only said that because I knew Harry wouldn't listen and he wouldn't give up."

"You could have tried to save his life."

"My dad, Uncle Sirius, and Mrs. Malfoy are with Harry. They'll save his life for us. Dad wouldn't waste his time on something that wouldn't work."

Hermione sniffled. "You're the great Seer. Let's get your crystal ball and see what's happening."

"Voldemort made the area Un-Seeable."

"Then use your mental connection with him to see what he's seeing."

"I can't turn it on and off."

"Can't you do anything? It's Harry!"

All they could do was sit in the school's entrance way under Draco's invisibility cloak, watch the Marauder's Map, and wait for Harry to come back. After two and a half hours, Harry's name appeared on the map next to the dot and name of someone else, 'K. Miller'. Draco and Hermione ran as fast as they could to the school's front gate.

K. Miller was a short, muscular, thick-set young wizard with lots of black hair. Draco and Hermione had never seen him before. More importantly, he was holding Harry's body in his arms, and Harry's robes appeared to be smoking.

"Don't worry, he's alive," Miller said just as Draco and Hermione arrived. "His mother sent him back here to be treated. He's been hit with some nasty hexes, but it wasn't a direct hit."

"Let go of me, _Kenneth_," Harry grumbled weakly. Thank Merlin, he really was alive, and he was well enough to think that he could walk on his own. He didn't seem concerned about the smoking robes. Draco recognized the special tone Harry used when saying the name 'Kenneth' – K. Miller was Harry's horrible herbology tutor.

"I'm not levitating you like a sack of manure," Kenneth said in an affectionately teasing manner. "We're not using any more magic on you until you've been de-cursed. Anyway, you say my wand work is like a blind first-year Hufflepuff's." Jokes were a good sign. If Harry were seriously injured, herbology tutor Kenneth would be moving more quickly to the hospital wing. Draco, Hermione, and Kenneth walked together, while Harry pretended not to be in pain.

"What happened?" Draco asked. "Is the fighting over? Who won?"

"It was a failure, as expected," Kenneth said, "but it was a necessary one."

"Father is alive," Harry said. "We saw him."

"He nearly killed you," Kenneth said, now dead-serious without any affection or teasing. Draco was surprised that a long-time follower of the Malfoys would be allowed to think or say anything negative about Lucius Malfoy, while continuing to look after Mrs. Malfoy and Harry.

They arrived at the front steps of the school, where Dumbledore and Snape were waiting for them. The school wards must have alerted them when Harry and Kenneth arrived. Snape had not participated in the battle; neither side could trust him enough not to make a show out of helping the other side, too. As fellow friends and supporters of the Malfoys, Kenneth and Snape recognized each other and greeted each other by name. Kenneth handed Harry to Snape and told him the names of the Dark curses Harry had been hit with. They were unfamiliar to Draco and Hermione, but Snape understood them.

"How did so many curses get through Harry's defenses?" Snape asked. He had been training Harry for years under the excuse of their private theoretical herbology and magical control lessons. He would know better than anyone what Harry could and could not do.

Kenneth said, "They brought out Lucius, with the Carrows on either side of him. Those bastards were telling Lucius what to do."

"And Harry let his father attack him?" Hermione asked. Draco was confused, too.

Professor Dumbledore made Harry's robe stop smoking, and he said, "The poor boy. It's part of the traditional upbringing for Dark wizards. Under-age children cannot shield themselves from the heads of their family. It's old magic, but it can be resisted." He sounded sympathetic, but after his repeated rejections of Harry's alliance, Draco didn't know whether he should believe that that sympathy was genuine.

Kenneth said, "That's right, Headmaster. Harry didn't resist. He called out to his father, and Lucius hexed him. Lily put herself between Lucius and Harry to protect the boy until I could take him back here."

Harry protested that that wasn't what happened, but he was not hiding his pain as well as before. Draco thought that Harry should be taken to the hospital wing immediately, but Snape wanted to stay and chat about the battle he missed.

"Lily? How is she? Did she get hit?" Snape asked. He sounded just as concerned for her as he was for Harry.

Kenneth said, "Unlike Harry, she used shields. She'll give as good as she takes, and it will be a good show for everyone watching, but Lucius won't feel a thing." Clearly Mrs. Malfoy was a big favorite with Kenneth.

Draco saw Harry shudder in Snape's arms from the effects of something bad, but no one else seemed to notice. Draco said, "Harry needs help. Let me take him if you're not going to take him to the hospital wing." For once, Snape listened and did what Draco wanted him to do.

Madam Pomfrey did her miraculous healing in the hospital wing, and Draco, Hermione, and Kenneth were instructed to wait outside until Harry was fit for visitors. Already outside the hospital wing were six Slytherins from different years, pretending to be nonchalantly lounging there for no particular reason, even though it was the middle of the school day and they should be in class.

A fourth-year girl called out to Draco, "Where's your better half?"

"Did you lose your boyfriend already?"

"Or did you tire him out? I hear Madam Pomfrey has good strengthening potions."

Draco had heard much worse remarks from the Slytherins, but this time he blushed because the Malfoys' herbology tutor was behind him listening. "I'm glad you all care about Harry so much. He'll be fine. I'll send you and your evil little friends updates on his condition in the dungeon, so go away and leave me alone."

The Slytherins were too cool to show that they were relieved that Harry had not been seriously injured. They made a few more coarse remarks about what Draco could do with his boyfriend to celebrate, and then they went off to continue having their sick Slytherin fantasies about Harry somewhere else.

"Those were some of Harry's Slytherin friends," Hermione explained to Kenneth. "They tease Draco a lot, but they don't mean anything by it."

Kenneth nodded and did not laugh, as Draco expected him to. He seemed more interested in examining Draco, evaluating him as a potential Malfoy significant other, and mentally listing all the reasons why Draco wasn't good enough for Harry.

"It's, um, good to finally meet you, Mr. Miller," Draco said as a way of changing the subject. "Harry has been talking about you for years."

"Telling you how horrible I am, I know," Kenneth said, and Draco remembered the letters he sent to Harry in the summer after their second year that he had addressed to 'Horrible Herbology Tutor Kenneth, Malfoy Manor'. Draco mumbled a half-apology and Kenneth laughed. "You two aren't anything like I imagined you to be. You're good kids."

Hermione looked offended by that description of them – the smartest witch of their year and the best Quidditch player the school had seen in decades – but Draco didn't see anything wrong with being a 'good kid'. "What else would we be?" he asked.

Kenneth said, "More like me and everyone else Lucius Malfoy used to invite to the Manor. People are nice to the Malfoys because they want something in return."

Draco and Hermione had never been invited to Malfoy Manor, back before it was destroyed. Draco's parents also never went there. Mrs. Malfoy visited Godric's Hollow, and she brought Harry with her. Draco remembered one person who had been to Malfoy Manor – Cedric Diggory – but it was disrespectful to think that way about the dead. The Diggories had wanted money and power from the Malfoys, and they received it while Cedric was engaged to Harry.

"We are Harry's friends because we like him," Hermione said, "even though he can sometimes sound too much like his father and be old-fashioned, stubborn, judgmental, and bigoted."

Draco agreed and added, "He studies too much, he scares our house mates, he won't watch my Quidditch matches, he can't even remember the rules for Quidditch, and he spends too much time with Slytherins. But he has very nice hair."

Kenneth was very amused by them. "You really aren't anything at all like I imagined. Good, good. I'd better go back and see that Lily and the others got off the island. We caused enough damage that the Dark Lord will need a new cave to hide in. He didn't come out and fight, but he hasn't fought anyone since his resurrection."

Now that they knew that Harry would be all right, Hermione decided that her arithmancy lesson was critically important. Draco was the only one still waiting a hour later when Madame Pomfrey declared that Harry Malfoy could accept visitors. Mrs. Malfoy had managed to arrive without Draco noticing. She was wearing nice dress robes and she looked perfectly composed, beautiful, and uninjured. Draco knew that Mrs. Malfoy was a very talented witch and a strong fighter, but he was surprised by how normal she seemed after taking part in the battle. Or maybe she was good at using glamors and hiding her real emotions.

She smiled and stood up when Draco came in. "Draco, you've been growing again, haven't you? James, Sirius, and Tonks are all healed and fine now. Sirius will have a bit of a limp that needs to heal naturally for a few days, but that's his fault for trying to take down Bellatrix Lestrange single-handedly."

"Is Aunt Bella all right?" Draco asked. "I mean, I'm really happy that Uncle Sirius is fine, but Aunt Bella is family, too."

"She's a tough witch. If she were sane and on my side, I'd be glad to fight with her. There were no fatalities on either side, but I didn't see everything. I was more concerned about Harry and Lucius."

Harry was sitting up in his bed and looking unhappy that he had to stay there. Maybe he wanted to go to the critically important arthimancy lesson, too. Draco sat down on the foot of his bed and said, "Hermione said she'd share her arthimancy notes with you."

That made Harry look a little less unhappy. "Shouldn't you be in class, too?" he asked.

"Everyone knew where I was, and no one made me leave," Draco said. It hadn't occurred to him that anyone would expect him to be anywhere else when his best friend was cursed by his father in a big battle at Voldemort's lair in the Orkney Islands.

"We're glad you're here," Mrs. Malfoy said.

She left so she could look after their other allies and prove to the world that Harry and she had not been seriously injured by Mr. Malfoy. Draco stayed at Harry's hospital bed and listened to all the reasons why it wasn't Lucius Malfoy's fault that he had to attack Harry. Draco didn't argue, partly because he mostly agreed with Harry and partly because he was too relieved that Harry was OK to care. Hermione came after arthimancy, and Draco fell asleep on Harry's bed while they talked about very boring things.

There were several unexpected consequences of the attack.

#1: Voldemort sent Harry a congratulatory letter and announced that he would accept Harry as a Death Eater at age 15, even though he had been planning to wait until Harry's 16th birthday in the summer to initiate him.

"You'd think he'd be more upset about having to change caves," Draco said.

"I think he may even be a bit serious," Harry said. He thanked the Dark Lord for his congratulations, but he was forced to refuse his kind offer of membership in the Death Eaters because he did not like to fight for causes doomed for failure.

#2: Sirius Black met with Professor Dumbledore and, according to his reports of their meeting, insisted that Dumbledore allow Harry Malfoy join the Order of the Phoenix. Half the Order had already taken part in Harry's raid. Even more unexpectedly, Dumbledore agreed. Harry took the binding oaths at the end of March to be a full member of the Order.

"Dumbledore added a last requirement before I took the oath," Harry told Draco and Hermione afterwards. "I'm not allowed to become engaged without his permission. He said that he disapproves of some of my friends and allies, and he would not want me to bind myself to a family that he cannot trust."

"That's not fair," Hermione said. "He doesn't have that power over the other unmarried Order members."

"Do you think I was in a position to refuse? He agreed to give up that power once Father is freed. It will only be a few months. I won't become engaged to anyone until then. Right, Draco?"

Hermione and Harry laughed, and Draco realized that they must have actually been paying attention to the gossip in Gryffindor about Draco and Harry's secret engagement. Maybe Draco should have been a bit more active in denying that rumor. Now he felt very embarrassed that Harry knew about it.

#3: The Ministry of Magic declared Lucius Malfoy a war criminal and issued a warrant for his arrest. Mrs. Malfoy fought the decision, but the enemies of the Malfoy family were enjoying the backing of the 'Daily Prophet' and popular support. Lucius Malfoy had attacked his own wife and son, and they were still defending him! The Malfoy family had always been strange, scary, and dysfunctional.

* * *

The vision felt unnatural, wrong, uncomfortable. Draco could see a small, dusty, glass orb with his name on it, and he felt that it was incredibly important that he got that orb. But this was not a normal, true vision. 

Then it shifted to a different vision, a real, natural, true vision of the future. Like most of Draco's true visions, it didn't make much sense. He saw a stone archway with a tattered black curtain. It was scary, and Draco was glad and confused when he woke up.

A glass orb and a stone archway – was this a Voldemort vision? But the glass orb did not feel like a real vision. Was it only a dream? He always sent his Voldemort visions to the Headmaster, but he didn't want to share dreams that made no sense.

Harry was awake and reading his Potions textbook. He moved over and Draco sat down on his bed next to him. "I don't know what I saw, but it wasn't Voldemort," Draco said. "A glass orb with my name on it, then a stone archway with a black curtain that was really, really scary. Do you know what that means?"

"It sounds like the Department of Mysteries," Harry said. "It's a nasty place. Father took me once, mainly to show off to everyone that he was so important he could take his nine-year-old son into the most secret parts of the Ministry."

"I don't understand. What's the glass orb?"

"Your Divination tutor, Irvine or whatever his name is, should have told you about that. The Department of Mysteries keeps every true prophecy in a glass orb in the Hall of Prophecy. Father had a prophecy about me before I was born, and he showed me the glass orb with my name on it."

"You have a prophecy?"

"So do lots of people. It's a huge room. The archway is in the Death Chamber. Father wouldn't let me go in and look at it. The archway leads to the realm of the dead, and no one has returned through it."

Harry's descriptions sounded exactly like what Draco saw, but that didn't explain why Draco should have seen them in his visions. From what Professor Snape reported to the Order and what Harry told Draco and Hermione, Voldemort was still very, very interested in learning the full prophecy about Draco and him. Draco didn't need to have a vision to learn that. And the archway? That could be a warning. Draco was going to stay far, far away from it if he ever went to the Department of Mysteries.

"The vision of the glass orb didn't feel right," Draco remembered. "I'll write to Irwin about that. Maybe it was a normal dream."

"About things and places you've never seen? It was a vision."

Draco should have written down everything while it was still fresh in his mind, but it was late, he was tired, and Harry's bed was safe and comfortable. He moved under the covers, took one of Harry's pillows, and went back to sleep. He never had bad visions or nightmares when he was in Harry's bed.

Then there was a screeching bird in the room. That wasn't right. Draco reached for his wand, then realized that he had left it under the pillow on his bed, not Harry's. Harry had his wand out, and he opened the curtains to see what creature was in their room.

"What is it?" Seamus called.

"It's an owl from the Dark Lord," Harry said.

"Why does he have to send you things in our dorm room?" Ron grumbled.

"Hey, where's Draco?" Dean said.

"With me," Harry said, as if that wasn't completely embarrassing. Draco was going to be teased by his dorm mates about sleeping in Harry's bed for the rest of his life. He'd been very careful not to let other people know about his tendency to end up in Harry's bed when he was too freaked out by his Voldemort visions to sleep in his own bed. It wasn't a very brave, Gryffindor-ish thing to do.

Draco heard the bird screech again and fly out the room. Then Harry came back into the bed. He was holding a letter and a vial of clear liquid.

"What's that?" Draco asked, pointing to the liquid.

Harry read the letter. "Pensieve memories from Peter Pettigrew. The Dark Lord expects that this will make our negotiations more interesting. In case I don't cooperate, copies have been made to send to the Ministry, the 'Daily Prophet', Dumbledore, and my mother."

"Should you show that to Snape or Professor Dumbledore?"

"I need to see how bad the memories are. Wait a minute." Harry opened the bed curtains and went to his wardrobe. He took a velvet pouch from a drawer and took something small out of it, then returned to the bed and drew the curtains. He unshrank the item. It was a pensieve. Normal fifteen-year-old wizards don't own a pensieve. They were incredibly valuable magical artifacts.

"What else do you have in your wardrobe?" Draco asked. "Or did you pick up a couple of those in Bulgaria with the unauthorized time turners?"

"Father removed everything from the Manor at the beginning of the summer, and not everything fit in the family Gringott vaults. This is one of our smaller ones." Harry poured the liquid memory into the pensieve and swirled it with his wand. "I'll look first."

Watching someone else view a pensieve is strange. Harry was sitting less than a foot away from Draco on the bed, but he was mentally somewhere completely different and awful. After about thirty seconds, he removed his wand, shook his head, and blinked a lot.

"Don't look," he said. "It could be faked. Father could be under the Imperius curse. It's not real. It can't be real." He carefully poured the pensive liquid back into the vial that Voldemort had sent.

"Is your dad all right?" Draco asked.

Harry shook his head no. "If this is real… No, it's not real."

"What does it show?"

"Father killing at least two dozen muggles. It's awful. The Dark Lord has the muggles brought in, then he orders Father to kill them. Father bows and then does it. He uses a curse used at the Manor for killing rats, it shouldn't even work on people. It can't be real."

Death Eaters have been sentenced to life imprisonment in Azkaban for doing much less than that. If Lucius Malfoy killed over twenty muggles, he was going to get the Dementor's Kiss. Then what would Harry do?

"Snape would know whether it's real," Draco said. "And if it's real, then maybe Snape can help you plan how you're going to get your father out of the country before that gets sent to the Ministry."

"I don't know how we're going to do it, but Father is escaping." Harry opened the bed curtains again and took the Marauder's Map from his nightstand, and then closed the curtains again. "Professor Snape isn't here."

"Then do you have to go see Dumbledore?"

"I'll wait for Professor Snape." Harry put the map away and put his pensieve on his nightstand. Then he went back to bed and picked up his potions textbook.

"I can go back to my own bed," Draco offered. He felt very pathetic, and he was glad that Harry laughed and told him to sleep. Draco didn't think he would be able to sleep – Harry was still upset, they didn't know whether the pensieve memories were real, and Draco was still spooked by his vision of the archway to death. But somehow it was morning, and Harry had left the bed curtains open when he went down to see Professor Snape.

"He didn't even stay long enough to say 'good morning'," Dean observed.

"Love 'em and leave 'em," Seamus agreed.

"Don't worry, I'm sure Harry still respects you," Ron said.

For once, those stupid rumors about Draco and Harry being secretly engaged could be useful. Instead of looking like a scared coward, Draco could let his friends think that he was having a very _good_ night.

"You're just jealous," Draco said with a wicked grin, and his friends laughed and whistled.

Two weeks later, Voldemort sent the incriminating memories to the wide world, as threatened. As far as most of the wizarding world was concerned, Lucius Malfoy was now just as bad as Voldemort, and he could look forward to a long Azkaban sentence if he ever escaped from captivity. Harry was still confident that he would be able to save his father, and Draco believed him.

* * *

When Draco fainted during his Defense Against the Dark Arts OWL exam and had a vision of Harry tied to a chair in the Hall of Prophecy at the Ministry of Magic, he knew it was a true vision. 

Harry had arranged to take his OWL exams two weeks early, and he had left Hogwarts to do important Order business. Dumbledore wanted him to have more specialized battle training, but Harry had been determined to attack the Death Eaters again, without delay. Harry's newest attack must have gone wrong.

"It was a vision about Harry," Draco told Madame Umbridge when he regained consciousness. "We have to save him."

Now that they saw that Draco was awake and alive, the other students went back to their exams. Thanks to Madame Umbridge's obsessive exam preparation, they would all get very good scores on the theoretical sections, and thanks to Dumbledore's Army, many would do very well on the practical component. Unfortunately, Dumbledore's Army had been temporarily disbanded after they got caught performing unauthorized powerful Dark magic in the Room of Requirement by Madame Umbridge. Harry had thought that it was a standard spell for degnoming gardens, but it had actually been banned as a brutal means of torture three hundred years ago. Professor Dumbledore was currently at the Ministry negotiating a mass amnesty for the students.

The anti-Malfoy fever at the Ministry required Madame Umbridge to distance herself publicly with her favorite student, Harry Malfoy, but Draco knew that she still cared about Harry more than anyone else in the school, probably more than anyone else in the world. She also knew about Draco's advanced Seer abilities.

After checking that the other students were still working and not watching them, she whispered, "Where is he?"

"Department of Mysteries, Hall of Prophecy. Harry is tied to a chair. Can I floo my dad? He'll go save him."

"An ordinary auror cannot enter the Hall of Prophecy. I have a floo connection to all parts of the Ministry from my office. You should not go alone."

"Will you come?" he asked. At the beginning of the year, he would have never imagined that he would sincerely want and need her help to save Harry, but she was more than she seemed. She was a true ally to the Malfoy family, and as the Senior Undersecretary to Minister Cornelius Fudge, she had very valuable Ministry connections and authority.

"Not during the exams. I will contact the aurors." She stood up and looked around the room. She called out, "Hermione Granger, Ron Weasley, Neville Longbottom. Come here." The fourth year Gryffindor/Ravenclaw charms class was next door, and Umbridge quickly summoned Ginny Weasley and Luna Lovegood. How did Madame Umbridge know who were the most loyal and committed members of the DA? They were all led into Madame Umbridge's office and shoved into the floo.

"What's going on, Draco? Where are we?" Hermione asked. They were all in the Hall of Prophecy. The air was very cold, the lights were dim, and they could see the rows of shelves containing small bottles.

"We're at the Department of Mysteries' Hall of Prophecy. I had a vision that Harry was here tied to a chair. We need to save him. Madame Umbridge is calling the aurors. She'll contact Professor Dumbledore, too."

"Who could capture Harry Malfoy?" Ginny Weasley asked. "There must be a lot of Death Eaters here."

Fuck, Draco hadn't thought about that. He hadn't seen guards around Harry. He assumed that he could come in, grab Harry, and leave before anyone knew that Draco had been there at all.

"And why put him here?" Hermione said. "The Death Eaters must have snuck into the Ministry with Harry, and no one noticed. That's impossible."

"We're here now, so why don't we look for Harry and talk about it later." Ron Weasley was not nearly as dumb as he looked.

The group of students walked down the aisles with their wands out and ready, but they were alone. Draco felt that they were getting closer to Harry but then… No one was there. He knew it was the right spot, but where was Harry?

"He should be here," Draco told the others, not that they would be able to find him any better than Draco could. "It was a real vision, I think, it was very short but I thought it felt real. I could feel that it was happening now, here. Harry has to be here."

Then all the lights shut off, and Draco realized it was a trap. It hadn't been a real vision, it had been like the weird vision of the prophecy bottle. Someone had been inserting false visions into his mind. Voldemort! He knew about their mental link! Mr. Malfoy must have told him.

"Wh-which way back to the floo?" Neville stammered. He wasn't a very courageous person, but Draco knew from their DA meetings that Neville would not let them down in a fight.

"This way, follow me," Luna said with unexpected courage and authority. She used lumos so they could see the aisles, but that also exposed their position to the bad guys. The curses started flying, she ended the spell, and they were all in the dark again.

How do you attack an invisible enemy? Their opponents weren't having any problems finding their targets. The students ran towards where they thought the floo was, and Draco quickly realized that he was lost, in the dark, pursued by Death Eaters, and hit by at least a half dozen curses.

"Go to row 97," called a voice from down the aisle. It was Lucius Malfoy. He was leading the Death Eater attack, and Harry wasn't there! "Draco Potter, you are going in the wrong direction. Ninety-seven. You are expected to know what the bottle looks like by now. How many times do we need to send you visions for them to get through to your tiny brain?"

Draco knew he should fight back, now that he knew where the Death Eater was, but he couldn't attack Harry's father. Mr. Malfoy didn't want to be a Death Eater. He wasn't attacking Draco with Unforgiveables like he could be. He was just trying to fulfill a mission and get out of there. Draco heard Hermione shriek from another part of the Hall and one of the shelves being pushed down, all the glass bottles falling and releasing a babble of prophecies.

"I don't know where we are, Mr. Malfoy," Draco said. "I can't see."

Mr. Malfoy cast a powerful lumos that illuminated a large part of the hall. Mr. Malfoy was wearing the normal all-black Death Eater robes and mask, but he made no attempt to hide his distinctive white-blond hair. He wanted to be recognized. Of course! He needed to be captured in battle! The light attracted the notice of other people in the hall. Another two or three shelves went down.

"Get the prophecy and let us leave. Stop, it's this row. It's not far down here. Third shelf from the bottom." Mr. Malfoy did not sound like an enemy. He was tired.

Another Death Eater came down the aisle and said, "Did you get it yet?"

"Potter was about to." Now Mr. Malfoy sounded more like himself, playfully malicious and snide. He hit Draco's left foot with Cruciatus for a second, only long enough for the other Death Eater to be assured that Mr. Malfoy was being an evil Death Eater and torturing a young student. Apparently the feet were not as sensitive to Cruciatus as the rest of the body. Draco barely felt it at all.

"You can't let yourself be captured by the aurors, sir," Draco said. "They'll throw you in Azkaban for killing those muggles."

"Thank you for your concern, Draco, now get the prophecy."

Draco looked at the third shelf from the bottom, as instructed, and he found his bottle. Now what? He didn't want to give it to the Death Eaters, even though he knew that it didn't say anything important. Draco put his prophecy bottle in his pocket. He needed to capture Mr. Malfoy for Harry, but he couldn't just petrify him and expect that the other Death Eaters would leave him behind. He needed something more. He needed help.

Help arrived. The lights came on, and Draco's dad said with the sonorous charm, "Draco, where are you?" The aurors were there!

Mr. Malfoy must have been pleased by this turn in events, but he could not let the other Death Eaters know. They would get in the way, and maybe kill him before he could be captured and saved. Mr. Malfoy ordered the other Death Eaters to do something evil elsewhere, and he gestured for Draco to come to him.

"I'm not going to hurt you," Mr. Malfoy said. "I just require your assistance in getting out of here alive." Draco didn't move, but he didn't run away. What if he was wrong about Lucius Malfoy wanting to be captured? What if he wanted to take Draco back to Voldemort?

"Dad! Row 97!" Draco yelled as loudly as he could. Then he realized that the sound of falling shelves was coming closer to them. The shelves were falling down like dominos, and Mr. Malfoy and he were going to be crushed if they didn't run. They came to that conclusion at the same time, and they ran side-by-side out of the Hall of Prophecy and into the next room.

Oh fuck, the room had the arch of Death. There were already about a dozen people, aurors and other professions, fighting Death Eaters in the room. Draco wanted to go somewhere else to hide, but Mr. Malfoy pushed him inside.

"Now we look like we're dueling and I let you win," Mr. Malfoy said. He hit Draco with a dancing hex, Draco responded with a jelly-legs jinx, and Lucius intentionally missed Draco with something nasty. He said, "Your father is coming to your aid. Quick, disarm me."

Draco cast the petrified curse instead, because that seemed like a more definitive end to their fake duel. Mr. Malfoy fell down elegantly, indicating that he had been expecting this move. Draco went to Mr. Malfoy's side and crouched next to him as the fighting continued around them. Seeing that Draco was all right, James turned back and fought at Sirius's side. Draco heard the distinctive cackles of Aunt Bella, and he hoped that his dad and Uncle Sirius weren't too severe on her. She was insane, but she was still family.

Draco didn't want to watch the fighting. His friends were in other parts of the Department of Mysteries, hopefully hiding from the action like he was. He took Mr. Malfoy's wand, but otherwise let Mr. Malfoy alone and prevented other people from falling over them.

"Nooooo!!! Sirius!!!" James Potter's cry filled the room, and Draco almost stood up to see what happened. But he heard his aunt's laughter, and he knew it was safest to stay out of the way and not to attract any extra attention to himself.

The battle was over. The remaining Death Eaters vanished, and the assorted Order members were gathering around the veil. Uncle Sirius was not there. Now Draco knew the meaning of his visions. Sirius had been killed, maybe even by Aunt Bella. His father was shouting for Sirius and throwing things through the archway, hoping that something would come out. But there was nothing they could do to bring Sirius back.

There was an apparition crack, and Harry Malfoy was there in rather battered and singed dueling robes. His face was flushed from the efforts of whatever fighting he had been involved in, and his hair was supernaturally perfect. He was glowing with magical power and exertion. He looked happy.

"Draco, I heard you were here," he said. "Did you get hit with anything? What happened with the veil? Dumbledore and I just dueled against the Dark Lord together in the lobby. It was incredible. Tom ran away before we could hit him hard."

Draco still didn't move from his position next to Mr. Malfoy. If he got up, he would have to go to the veil and see that Sirius was gone forever.

Harry could see that Draco was going through shock, and he kneeled down next to him and was thinking about what to say when he saw Draco's prisoner's hair. "Father?" he whispered. He laid his hand on Mr. Malfoy's shoulder, and he said to Draco, "Don't let them follow me." He took out his wand, but before he could apparate he was grabbed from behind and thrown down to the ground away from his father. Draco was surprised that it was his father, happy and gentle James Potter, who had handled Harry like that.

"Don't even think about it, Harry," he growled.

Harry stood up and said, "I am going to take my father to get medical help. You have your own casualties to look after." He stepped towards his father again, and James grabbed Harry's wand and cast a containment spell on Harry so he could not use wandless magic.

"Lucius Malfoy will be thrown into Azkaban and given the Kiss as he deserves for his part in the death of Sirius Black."

"I am sorry for your loss, but I need to help my father. Let me speak with him. I need to know he is all right."

"After he tried to kill Draco, too?"

"Mr. Malfoy wasn't trying to kill me. He was telling me what to do to capture him," Draco said. "I won't press charges."

Other aurors now noticed that they had a very important prisoner. Harry, James, and the others argued over what to do with Mr. Malfoy. Draco got up and walked over to the archway with the veil.

Uncle Sirius was dead because Draco had fallen for Voldemort's trap. Lucius Malfoy had been part of the planning of the trap, just so he could use Draco to capture him and release him from his captivity. But Mr. Malfoy only wanted his freedom, he didn't want Sirius to die. No one could blame Aunt Bella because she was mentally ill. It was all Draco's fault.


	17. Hogwarts Year 6, pt 1

Chapter 17 – Hogwarts Year 6, pt 1

Sirius Black's death was the worst thing that had ever happened to Draco and his parents. After the school year ended, Draco stayed in his bedroom and read books on how to improve his Occlumency to keep Voldemort out of his head. He didn't fly at all since Sirius's death. James Potter had been put on temporary leave from the Ministry, and he was reading all the books he could find on the afterlife, ghosts and necromancy. He acted lost without his best friend. Narcissa Potter channeled her grief into organizing the biggest, most lavish funeral in decades. Sirius hated big, traditional formal events, but he was dead and he couldn't stop her.

The church interior had to be enlarged to fit all the people for the funeral. The entire auror department was there, even the co-workers Sirius constantly teased and the supervisors who complained about his antics and regularly threatened to demote him. There were people from other Ministry departments who had worked with Sirius, people who had drank with Sirius at his favorite pub near the Ministry, people who gave parties that Sirius had crashed, old school friends, old neighbors, lots and lots of people who had known and liked him.

Then there were the representatives of the old Dark wizarding families attending in respect for the passing of the head of the House of Black. They were in their family dress robes, not the mourning black of the people who had known Sirius. Draco knew that they were there to see him, Sirius's heir, the last male blood descendent of the Blacks, and, indirectly, Sirius's murderer. He sent Sirius to his death, and in return Draco became the new head of the House of Black. It wasn't right, it wasn't fair, and Draco didn't want to be there.

Draco wore the family dress robes of the Blacks. They were made from the blackest of black materials; if family legends were to be believed, they were interwoven with the shadows of unicorns. The robes had no decorations, no coat of arms, no emblems, no precious jewels, no embroidery. The blackness itself was the sign of the Blacks. There was also a full-length hooded sable fur cape. Wearing the clothes made Draco feel like a Dark wizard, even though he had grown up being told that he was one of the Lightest wizards. Sirius should have found a more appropriate heir.

He sat next to his mother, also in Black family dress robes, in the front row. Professor Dumbledore, the Minister of Magic, the head of the aurors, and Draco's mum spoke. Then it was time for Draco's part.

The elderly wizard conducting the funeral gestured for Draco to kneel down in front of him. Draco did so.

"Draco James Potter, henceforth known as Draco Black-Potter, we acknowledge you as the beloved cousin of Sirius Black, his chosen heir, and his blood heir. Draco Black-Potter, you are invited to become the head of the Noble and Most Ancient House of Black, if the ancient magic accepts you. If you are rejected by the ancient Black magic, you may suffer greatly and even perish. Do you accept the trial?"

No one mentioned the suffering and perishing part of the ceremony. His mother said he just needed to kneel and say yes. Draco did as his mother instructed, and he said yes.

Then the magic attacked. Draco couldn't see anything, only a cloud of thick black smoke all around him. He inhaled it and felt the magic move through his lungs and into his body, through every artery and vein in his body. He slowly exhaled, and the smoke dissipated and he was still kneeling in front of the old wizard. He wasn't dead. Did that mean he passed?

"Draco James Black-Potter, you are accepted by the ancient magic and therefore by all the wizarding world as the head of the Noble and Most Ancient House of Black. May you live long and serve and honor all those of your house and name."

The old wizard stepped back and Draco assumed that that meant that it was over. He stood up and slowly walked back to his seat, and he hoped that everyone didn't see how scared he had been by the ordeal. Something was wrong, though. Everyone was watching him and whispering to each other. What did he do wrong? Probably everything.

His mother was wiping away tears with a black handkerchief when he sat down. He leaned over to her and whispered, "What did I do wrong? Why is everyone staring at me?"

She rested her hand on top of Draco's head and felt his hair. "It's the ancient magic. Your hair changed color. It's black, like Sirius's."

Draco gasped and shook his mother's hand off his head. His hair! He had spent years complaining about how messy it was because of the Potter pixie curse, but he had grown into the sexily shaggy look. Sirius's hair was a different texture.

"Don't fidget, Draco dear," Narcissa said. "Your hair looks striking."

After the funeral was over, Draco had his mother transfigure her handkerchief into a handheld mirror, and he tried to assess the damage. His hair was completely black, with no highlights of any other colors. It didn't even reflect the light shining on it. It was Black black, the blackest of blacks. Only the color had changed. The cut and style was the same, but it no longer looked like his father's hair. Draco had always strongly taken after his mother, and now he looked even more like his mother and uncle.

Draco and his family went to the Black family crypt in the main London wizarding cemetery. There were not many family members. James and Narcissa, Aunt Andromeda and Uncle Ted Tonks, cousin Dora, and Draco. Aunt Bella was with the Death Eaters and her husband was still in Azkaban. Aunt Andy and cousin Dora were not even officially Blacks anymore, according to the Black family tree. Draco was the very last of the line. There was no body, but they had a coffin with some of Sirius's favorite possessions, including his flying motorcycle (shrunken), his leather jacket, and his broomstick. The coffin was placed in the crypt, and Narcissa added an inscription to the marble with his name and dates.

Then they had to go to the funeral reception in the lawn outside the church and accept the condolences of hundreds of people Draco had never seen before. Harry and Hermione were at the head of the queue. Hermione was in the standard black mourning robes that she must have read were appropriate for the funeral of a respected friend. Harry was representing the Malfoy family in his family's traditional dark blue robes with all the decorations and precious jewels that the Black family robes lacked. He was dazzling, as always, and today he was smiling more than Draco had seem him smile in months. Draco could guess the reason why: Lucius Malfoy was safe, locked up in the most secure cell in the deepest dungeon of Azkaban. Harry had known Sirius and fought aside him last spring, but Sirius Black had not been a friend or ally of the Malfoy family. He stopped smiling when he saw how miserable Draco looked and felt.

"Is your hair permanently black now?" Hermione asked. "What did the ancient magic feel like? What would have happened if you weren't really a Black or if you weren't worthy?"

"Um, thank you for respecting our day of grief and remembrance," Draco recited because that was all he was supposed to say. She was confused, but she was smart enough to recognize that she had stumbled into a new part of wizarding culture that she would have to read about later.

Harry shook Draco's hand and said, "We mourn with you and we remember and we celebrate the future." He held Draco's hand longer than necessary, and he touched Draco's newly black hair quickly and lightly with his other hand. "It looks good on you," he added quietly, before releasing Draco's hand and steering Hermione on to Draco's parents. Draco felt that he was still blushing from Harry's touch on his hair, but no one could comment or laugh at him because they had to be good wizards and exchange the traditional condolences.

While Draco stood with his parents, he could easily follow Harry's bright white-blond head as he went through the crowds and talked with people. Mrs. Malfoy stood with Mr. Lupin and Sirius's other friends, while Harry presented himself to the heads of various Dark families. He looked happy. He must be talking about his father.

Draco didn't know that Pansy Parkinson had come with her parents until he was shaking her hand and listening to her saying something about celebrating the future. She was close to the end of the queue, and after an hour and a half of condolences, people weren't expecting Draco to follow all the traditional rules anymore.

Instead of moving on to his parents, she said to Draco, "Nice hair. Harry Malfoy likes it. He told me so. He's definitely going to make you an offer now."

Draco checked that his mother wasn't watching him, and he whispered, "An offer? For what? To be my hair dresser?"

Pansy laughed loudly, but not loudly enough to get the attention of anyone who would send her forward. "Marriage, you idiot. The Malfoys will get the Black inheritance and whatever scraps the Potters have, plus all the Black allies and the political power. Malfoy won't find a better match in this country. My parents agree." Pansy had been saying things like that all year, but she sounded more serious and excited this time.

Funerals are not the appropriate place for gossip. Today was a day to think of Sirius, not Harry Malfoy and his father's political machinations that may by dependent on Harry's marriage. Draco still couldn't completely dismiss the subject. It could be too important to be ignored.

"Harry won't marry me for my money or my connections."

"Just tell yourself that he's smitten with your silky raven locks. You lucky, lucky dog." Pansy winked, and Draco had to thank the next mourner, an old witch who said that Sirius had been very kind to her pet goat.

Draco's Divination tutor Irwin Jones also attended the funeral. He wore bright, tie-dyed robes and green-tinted glasses. Before he left, he told Draco that he would be a Summer Junior Student Trainee at the Ministry of Magic in the Department of Mysteries.

"What does that mean? I never heard of anything like that before."

"You will work with me and the other Ministry Seers to rebuild and refill the Hall of Prophecies. You may recall a bit of trouble with falling shelves when you were there last."

"But—but I don't know how to get other people's prophecies and put them into bottles."

"You'll learn. You won't regret this. In two weeks' time, you will be very, very glad that you agreed. You begin next Monday."

* * *

Two weeks later, Draco was bottling a prophecy accurately predicting the victors of the Trojan War when he heard a loud, piercing scream from the Death Chamber. He called out to Magdalena, a Seer working down the row from him, "What was that?"

"What?"

"The scream from the Dead room."

"I didn't hear anything."

Then he heard it again, louder, like a man was being tortured.

"You didn't hear that?" he asked Magdalena.

"I heard nothing."

Lots of strange things happened inside the Department of Mysteries, but this was the first time that Draco had heard anything from the Death Chamber. The necromancers could be in trouble, and somehow only Draco knew it. He said, "I'm going to investigate."

Draco marked his place in his log book, and he walked down the row towards the Death Chamber. None of the other people in the Hall of Prophecy seemed to hear the screams. It was all very strange. There was a third scream, and then Draco started running because he was certain that he recognized the voice. It wasn't one of the necromancers in trouble. It was Sirius!

He hadn't been in the room with the veil since the Ministry attack. There were three Ministry necromancers in front of the veil. The head necromancer held open an ancient text, the second necromancer, a very old lady, held sticks of incense, and a junior necromancer sat at a desk with parchment taking notes. The Seers and the Necromancers didn't talk much at work, and Draco had no idea what they were doing but it couldn't be good.

The head necromancer turned around and glared when Draco ran into the room. The elderly lady smiled as if Draco's arrival was a delightful treat. The junior necromancer made a note about Draco on his parchment. They didn't look like they were doing anything to torture spirits beyond the veil, but they must have done something to make Sirius – or Sirius's spirit – scream.

Draco stayed by the doorway, far away from the veil. He said, "Did you hear the screams? What are you doing? It sounds like Uncle Sirius, Sirius Black, the auror who went through the veil two weeks ago. Was it really him?"

The head Necromancer did not look like he believed a word Draco said. Why didn't anyone take Draco seriously? "You're with the Seers, aren't you, boy? What do you think you heard? Exactly. And when?"

"Sorry, sir, I'm a Summer Junior Student Trainee with the Seers. Draco Black-Potter, sir. I think—I know I heard three screams, just now. It sounds like Sirius, or a man who sounds like Sirius, or a spirit, is hurt. What are you doing to him?"

The lady necromancer said, "We were summoning passing spirits, young man. That does not cause any pain to the spirits. The dead are incapable of feeling pain. We did not hear any screams. You are the man's heir?"

"Yes, he's my uncle, I mean my second-cousin, my mother's cousin, but I called him my uncle."

Draco's responses were acceptable to the necromancers. The three spoke quietly together, and then the head necromancer said, "Come forward, Mr. Black-Potter, and stand in front of the veil."

Draco didn't want to get close to it, but if it meant they could reach Uncle Sirius, he'd risk it. He cautiously stepped forward, imagining what horrible things that would happen if he tripped and fell forward. There was a cold light breeze coming through the veil. It was scary.

"Now what?" he asked.

"Call for your uncle," the woman said.

"OK. Uncle Sirius? It's Draco. Are you there? Can you hear me?"

"Louder," the junior necromancer suggested.

"UNCLE SIRIUS!!!!!!!!! SIRIUS BLACK!!!! IT'S DRACO POTTER!!!!!!!!!"

They all waited for several seconds, but there was no reply. The head necromancer said, "We'll summon him again. We'll call him by name." He consulted his text and began to chant, and then Draco heard Sirius's voice!

"For Merlin's sake, stop that," he said, incredibly close. It sounded like he was just a few feet away, on the other side of the veil. Draco began to reach out to the veil, but the lady necromancer stopped him from being stupid.

"Do you hear?" Draco asked her. "He says to stop."

"Call to him," she said.

"UNCLE SIRIUS!"

"No need to shout, Draco," Sirius said. "What are you doing out there?"

"Is that really you? Are you alive?" Draco couldn't see anything beyond the veil, no shadow or indication that his uncle was a few feet away.

"You should have figured that out by now. You were at my funeral two weeks ago." Sirius was making jokes, it really was him!

"Are you a ghost?"

"Only losers become ghosts. I'm in limbo. It's not my turn yet to pass onto the other side."

Draco wished he had read some of his father's books on the afterlife. Limbo? "What are you doing there?"

"It's a big place. Then I got dragged over here. Tell your friends to be gentler when they want to summon someone. It hurts." He didn't sound very upset about the pain, which the necromancers said he wasn't supposed to feel because he was dead. He also didn't sound especially astonished to be able to speak with Draco through the veil. And how did he know about his own funeral?

"I need to tell Dad to come here."

The necromancers were not content to let Draco continue to have his private chat with his dead uncle. They wanted to try different spells on Sirius so they could speak with him, too. He was not like other dead spirits, so they were having problems. Draco sent an urgent message to his father in the auror offices, and he talked more with Sirius about the effects of the different spells the necromancers were trying.

James appeared faster than Draco would have thought possible, without breaking the anti-apparation wards like Harry had done during the attack on the Ministry last June.

"Sirius?" James called out. He stayed back several meters away from the veil, just as Draco had done when he had entered the room.

"James?" For the first time, Sirius sounded emotional and uncertain about what was going on.

"Did you hear, Dad?" Draco asked.

"Yes." James stepped closer and said, "Sirius, are you all right? Can we help you?"

"I'm dead, and there's no changing that."

"But are you all right in limbo?"

"Well, yes. I'm as good as I can be. It's different here. Interesting."

"Tell me all about it."

Draco stepped back and let his father take his place in front of the veil. The necromancers were still trying to cast things on Sirius so they could speak with him, but now Sirius didn't bother to respond to them. Draco realized something that he should have noticed years ago: Sirius and James were much more than best friends. They were like brothers. And that was why he had always been 'Uncle' Sirius – not because of his mother but because of his father's relationship with him.

Draco wrote a message to his mother and then to Remus Lupin and Lily Malfoy about Sirius. He spent the rest of the day in the Death Chamber with the others, listening to Sirius from beyond the veil. All of Sirius's guests could hear him. Here was proof that strong ties of love could overcome the boundary between life and death. The necromancers were baffled and delighted.

Irwin had been right. Draco was very, very glad that he agreed to work at the Ministry for the summer.

* * *

Lucius Malfoy's preliminary hearing was on the same day as Harry's 16th birthday. Harry had written a few short letters to Draco saying that his father was well and that he was allowed to visit Lucius in Azkaban with his mother and Kenneth three times a week.

Harry expected all charges against his father to be dropped at the preliminary hearing. Lucius Malfoy had been plotting against Voldemort while he was pretending to be a good Death Eater. He had been recognized and celebrated as a spy during the first war, and he had been continuing that work. If the judge decided a full trial was necessary, Harry and his mother would post bail and Lucius Malfoy could go to whichever of the Malfoy homes he decided would be safest.

Draco wanted to believe that everything would happen as Harry predicted, but he read the 'Daily Prophet', which was still continuing its anti-Malfoy campaign, and he listened to the gossip at the Ministry of Magic, which was still blaming all its mistakes and problems on Lucius Malfoy and his supposed secret network of spies and saboteurs. It was a fact that Lucius Malfoy had killed those 24 defenseless muggles. He was in very big trouble.

James and Narcissa Potter were too preoccupied with the problems and complexities of communicating with semi-dead Sirius Black to pay any attention to the Malfoys' problems. Draco worried, though. It was very unlikely that Mr. Malfoy would get a fair trial. The judges would not be merciful to him. Mr. Malfoy may be sentenced to stay in Azkaban for years. Harry would hate that. Draco wouldn't like it, either. Mr. Malfoy had only been trying to survive long enough to escape from the Death Eaters.

Draco had very confused and dark visions on the night before Harry's birthday and Mr. Malfoy's preliminary hearing. Draco couldn't tell what he was seeing or what the visions meant, but he knew enough about Divination to know that they were a warning that something extremely bad was about to happen.

The extremely bad thing happened the next day. There was an unexpected early morning visitor at Godric's Hollow. Mrs. Lily Malfoy flooed in when they were eating breakfast. She was dressed very well, even by Malfoy standards, and she was very upset.

"Mrs. Malfoy!" Draco was the first one to notice her arrival, and he was the first to get up and help her sit down at the table. She looked like she was going to faint. "Where is Harry?" he asked, and he knew from his visions the night before that it wasn't anywhere good.

Mrs. Malfoy didn't acknowledge Draco or Narcissa's presence. She was there to see James. She took his hand and said, "James, you must help us. Harry has been abducted by Voldemort. Kenneth thinks that the Death Eaters used forced apparition, triggered when Harry left the blood wards. I need your help."

Draco should have warned Harry as soon as he woke up that something bad was going to happen. If he were a better Seer or if he were clever enough to interpret his visions, he could have saved Harry. It was his fault, again, and now Harry could be dead! No, Harry couldn't be dead. Draco had had only one warning vision. He'd have months of warnings if Harry's life was in danger. Or maybe Draco was a rubbish Seer and he wasn't as gifted as everyone said he was. He was a sham and a complete failure.

Draco felt dizzy, and he managed to sit back down before he fell over or was sick. Why did this have to happen to Harry? How could they save him? Draco leaned his elbows on the table and supported his head in his hands, and he hoped that everyone would solve everything before he screwed up again.

James watched Draco's reaction to the news, and then he looked to see what Narcissa would have to say. She was watching Draco, too, as a very concerned mother. That was all the approval he needed to agree to help the Malfoys. He squeezed Lily's hand and said, "We'll do whatever you want us to do. Have you seen Severus Snape? Has he heard about Voldemort's plans?"

Lily smiled, and her smile looked so much like Harry's that Draco felt even more ill. She said, "Thank you, James. I went to Spinner's End before I came here. Voldemort hasn't summoned Severus in over a month, but Severus says he can apparate directly to Voldemort's cave. He's going there now."

Draco said, "How do you know Voldemort took him? Could someone else have taken him? Lots of people hate your family." He would be more polite and tactful when he wasn't imagining all the different awful things Voldemort could be doing to Harry right now.

"Voldemort sent Harry a letter yesterday inviting him to his Death Eater initiation. He said that the directions to the ceremony would be made very clear. There must have been a tracking spell on it. No one knows where we are staying, not even Albus or Severus."

Another reason why this was Draco's fault. Draco knew that Harry was staying with his muggle aunt in Surrey. Voldemort could have found out when he was meddling with Draco's mind and giving him false visions of the Department of Mysteries. Draco shouldn't have used Divination to locate Harry last summer, and he should have had Harry obliviate him as soon as they realized that Voldemort knew about their mental link.

Lily continued, "We thought they'd try a physical attack when we entered or left the Ministry. Oh god, why today? Harry was supposed to speak at Lucius's hearing. Lucius needs both of us there."

"Have you told Albus?" James asked.

"No, please don't tell him until we know more about what's happening to Harry. Albus doesn't trust Harry as it is. And we can't let the Ministry find out. I don't want my son to be rescued from Voldemort and then sent straight to Azkaban like my husband."

Narcissa spoke for the first time since Lily arrived. "Harry is getting the Dark Mark. You cannot keep that a secret from Albus."

That was something that Draco was doing his very best not to think about. He groaned and said, "Can we go and save Harry now? We can call his allies and we'll go to the Orkney Islands and attack, like you did in the spring."

"That won't be necessary," Narcissa said. "I remember Lucius's initiation. He was taken on the morning of his sixteenth birthday, and he was returned to the same place exactly twenty-four hours later, wearing Death Eater robes and having that horrible tattoo."

She smiled like an evil Dark witch, enjoying shocking everyone else around the table. Draco's mum was in Slytherin House with Mr. Malfoy when they were at Hogwarts, so she would be in a position to know where Lucius had been on his sixteenth birthday. But Draco still thought it was really weird to hear his mother, the most anti-Malfoy person on the planet, speak about Mr. Malfoy as a boy. She almost sounded like she used to actually like him.

Lily looked as surprised as Draco was by this side of Narcissa Potter. "Lucius never told me that. Did Voldemort abduct him at Hogwarts, like he took Harry?"

"Lucius's father sent for him to meet him outside the school gates. Lucius suspected what would happen, and he warned me. He said that it was considered an honor to be inducted on your sixteenth birthday. Voldemort takes those he wants the most earliest."

"Poor Lucius," Lily sighed. She was probably one of the only people on the planet who would ever say that about Lucius Malfoy, even a sixteen-year-old Lucius being abducted in order to be inducted into the Death Eaters.

"But what about Harry?" Draco asked. "How do we save him? He doesn't want to be a Death Eater. Voldemort may try to kill him when Harry refuses."

Narcissa's remarks about Lucius's initiation surprisingly comforted Lily. The abduction and extended disappearance were normal. Her son would be returned. Now that Lily was acting more self-composed and in control, James released her hand and turned to his distraught son. "If we go apparate to the Orkney Islands with the entire aurors corp, it's going to be harder for Voldemort to return Harry to where he took him tomorrow morning. Sorry, Draco, but we're going to have to wait. Maybe Snape will come back with news."

"Or with Harry," Lily said. Now she sounded almost optimistic. "Severus said he would do his best to take Harry away, even if it meant exposing himself as a spy for Albus."

Narcissa said, "Snape wouldn't do anything so foolish. He was only telling you that to make you feel better." Even if she had been friends with a young Lucius Malfoy, she really, really didn't like the Malfoys now.

"Can I help?" Draco asked. "Can I wait for Harry at Mrs. Malfoy's sister's house? Dad has to go to work, and Mrs. Malfoy has to go to the Ministry for Mr. Malfoy's hearing. I'll wait for Harry, in case he escapes or Snape rescues him or Voldemort sends him home early."

James, Lily, and Draco waited for Narcissa's decision on the matter. She waited, pretended to think it over, and said, "Yes, it's best to send Draco away. He'll worry his little heart out over Harry if he stays here, and any decent Legilimens at the Ministry would get the whole story from him in five seconds."

Draco was given very detailed instructions about how to send emergency owls to Lily and James if Harry returned, and he was told to floo to 4 Privet Drive, Little Whinging, Surrey. The wards would recognize him as a trusted friend and ally of the Malfoys.

"Don't speak with the muggles unless you have to," Narcissa warned him before he left.

Petunia Dursley was sitting in a char in front of the fireplace when Draco flooed in. She didn't look like Lily or Harry. She was a skinny, tall blonde with a long neck and a harsh, mean look on her face. She was not pleased to see Draco. She glared at him and waited for him to see that he was unwelcomed and to leave at once. When he didn't leave, she finally said, "Who are you? Where's Lily? She said she would come back. The boy hasn't come back yet."

Oh. She was worried about Harry. Maybe this was how muggles always acted when family members were in danger. Draco felt a bit better about intruding into the Dursleys home now that he knew they cared about Harry. "You must be Mrs. Dursley. I'm Draco Black-Potter, Harry's best friend. I am very pleased to meet you. Mrs. Malfoy sent me here to wait for Harry. She went to the Ministry for Mr. Malfoy's hearing." He extended his hand to shake her hand, but she looked unwilling to risk touching him.

"She said her husband was missing. She never said anything about a hearing."

Oops. There must be a good reason why Mrs. Malfoy hadn't told her sister about Lucius Malfoy's rescue and immediate imprisonment. She could obliviate her sister later. Draco wasn't very good at lying, so he stuck with the truth. "Mr. Malfoy was missing, but we found him. Other people thought he did illegal things when he was gone, so he's now in prison."

"Prison?" Petunia screeched. "No one told me that!"

"He's innocent, though," Draco said quickly. "He didn't do anything wrong. He was acting as a spy for us. But now Voldemort has Harry—"

"Voldemort has Harry?" She knew enough about wizarding current events to know the significance of the name Voldemort and the awfulness of Harry's situation. "He knows where we live? Will he come back? What about my family? We don't want any part in your world's wars. Lily said that no one would find them here."

"He was only after Harry, and he got him."

Now they were joined by a very large and unattractive boy, about Draco's height and three times Draco's weight. There was no way that Dudley Dursley was biologically related to Harry Malfoy.

"Mum, do I have to watch the backyard? Nothing's happening," he whined. Then he saw Draco standing in front of the fireplace. "Is he another one of the freaks?"

Maybe 'freak' was the muggle term for 'wizard'. If Dudley had been watching outside for Harry's return, he must care about his cousin and want to help. That meant that he would have to be Draco's friend, no matter how repulsive his outward appearance was. Draco smiled and said, "Hi, you must be Dudley. I'm Draco Black-Potter. I'm here to watch for Harry, too."

Friendliness from a wizard immediately made him suspicious. Like his mother, he refused to shake Draco's hand and glared at him to make him leave. "You're wearing a dress like Harry. Are you his _boyfriend_?"

Draco didn't know anything about muggle humor, and he didn't think Dudley's remark would be funny even if he spent a lifetime studying the subject. "It's not a dress. It's a robe. We have normal shirts and trousers under the robes."

"Oh. Aren't you hot?"

"Kind of. I don't know if I can do magic here to cool off."

"Harry and Kenneth and Aunt Lily do magic. We don't let them do anything freakish to us, though."

"It's their house. You have to set up special wards for under-age wizards, or else we get in trouble for performing magic outside of school." Draco unbuttoned his robe and tossed on a living room chair. Dudley and Petunia Dursley looked at his muggle clothes as if they were more freakishly weird than the wizarding robes.

"Does Harry wear normal clothes under his dress, too?" Petunia asked.

"Most of the time, but not real muggle clothes. It's wizarding materials in muggle styles, incredibly expensive stuff, Harry could explain why it's better."

"Oh." That was probably the most shocking thing that Petunia Dursley had heard in months.

Dudley was able to adapt to the situation faster than his mother. "Do you want to see where Harry disappeared? It's in the backyard."

"Thanks."

Watching the backyard from the Dursleys' kitchen window was not very interesting. After Draco spent ten minutes mentally listing the different ways Voldemort could be torturing Harry, he decided he needed a distraction. Dudley Dursley was sitting with him, also watching the backyard silently.

"What's the noise coming from the big white box?" Draco asked.

"It's the refrigerator."

"Really? We have one at home, too, but it doesn't look like that. Why does yours make noise?"

"I don't know. A motor turns on when the temperature gets too high and cools things off, or something like that."

"Oh."

After a couple more minutes of silent watching, Dudley asked, "Why do you freaks use birds to send letters? Can't you use magic? E-mail is faster."

"What's e-mail? Is it like an owl?"

"Do you know what a computer is?"

"No. Do you keep one in your stable?"

During his day at Privet Drive, Draco learned what a computer was and what a television was, and he learned about Dudley's school and his boxing matches. He needed a distraction, because Harry was gone and no one was doing anything about it, and Dudley was flattered and charmed by all of Draco's questions and genuine interest in what he said.

Lily and Kenneth returned from the Ministry in the late afternoon, without Mr. Malfoy, of course. Kenneth was briefly surprised that Dudley Dursley was in the kitchen with Draco, but they were all used to completely ignoring the Dursleys.

"Bail denied," Kenneth explained Draco, not that any explanation was required. Draco would be angry about the biased justice system later, after Harry came home.

"Is Harry back?" Lily asked. "You didn't send a message, but the Ministry sometimes blocks incoming owls for visitors."

"Still gone," Draco said. Kenneth went into the living room and opened the floo for James Potter to come in. Draco's dad was still wearing his Ministry auror robes.

James patted Draco on the shoulder and kissed Lily on the cheek. He was more serious and sober than usual. That must mean no good news about Harry. He said, "I talked with Sirius. He's looking out at who's dead."

"Not Harry," Draco said. "Mum said that Voldemort would return him tomorrow morning. Nothing will happen to Harry." He then told Dudley about his semi-dead Uncle Sirius, much to the confusion of Kenneth and James. Lily cast tracking spells on the backyard hoping to detect broaches of their wards.

James said, "There was a Death Eater this morning who was hit with the killing curse. He was in his Death Eater robes, but there wasn't an attack anywhere and the Ministry aurors certainly didn't kill him. Sirius asked who killed him, but the man recognized him and wouldn't talk. It could have been Harry."

"He wouldn't use an unforgivable," Draco said. Unforgivables meant Azkaban, even if used in self-defense against the most wicked wizards. They were unforgivable, after all.

"Yes, he would," Kenneth said. He probably knew Harry's evil capabilities better than Draco did. He was one of Harry's tutors, although the more Draco saw of him, the less convinced he was that Kenneth did much herbology these days.

Lily said, "It's been a long day, but would someone tell me why Dudley is here?"

"He lives here," Draco said.

Kenneth said, "Draco made a new friend." He sounded both amused and baffled by this development.

"Yes, Draco would, wouldn't he?" Lily said. She sounded very tired. "Lucius looks terrible. We need to push his trial forward as soon as possible. We'll hire more lawyers to be prepared in time. He needs to get out of prison. Thank you, James, for helping today, and thank you, Draco, for waiting for Harry."

"I'm staying," Draco said.

"He can make friends with Petunia's awful husband," Kenneth said. "What is his name? I always forget. It's something very muggle."

"Vernon," Dudley said. He didn't sound upset by the casual abuse of his family by wizards. He must be used to it.

Petunia Dursley was annoyed that the wizards had taken over her kitchen for its good view of the apparition point in the back yard. Lily gave her money to take her family out to dinner somewhere nice. Dudley invited Draco to come, but Draco said he needed to wait for Harry.

Eventually it was too dark to see outside, and Lily set up extra strong alarms around the yard to detect if Harry returned during the night. Mrs. Malfoy stayed in the Dursley's guest room, formerly known as Dudley's second bedroom. Kenneth, appropriately for his official position in the Malfoy household as the herbology tutor, stayed in the garden shed in the backyard. Draco was sent to spend the night in Harry's room, which was a cupboard under the stairs enlarged to be a small bedroom. All four walls were filled from floor to ceiling with bookshelves overflowing with old, important-looking magical books. Harry must have crammed all the most valuable volumes from the library at Malfoy Manor into his room. The ceiling was enchanted to show the sky.

Draco tried all the tricks to induce a vision, but none came. He slept peacefully and soundly. The next morning he was awoken by loud knocking on the door. He looked up at the ceiling/sky and saw it was already bright outside. How long had he been asleep? The door opened, and suddenly he tumbled out of bed and fell onto a vacuum cleaner. Harry's bedroom had transformed back into a cleaning cupboard, and Draco was too tall to be able to lie down in it.

"Sorry," Dudley said. "Did I break the magic? I didn't mean to. I'll go away, but I thought you'd want to know that Harry's back."

Harry was sitting in an armchair in the living room when Draco managed to get himself out of the cupboard. Draco brushed the dust off his muggle clothes and put on his glasses. Harry looked very pale and agitated, but he was alive and safe. He was wearing a common black robe, which was definitely not what he would have been wearing when he left for the Ministry. Professor Snape was standing next to him wearing in the same type of black robe. It was a Death Eater robe. Draco knew that his mum was right. Harry had been forced to take the Dark Mark and become a Death Eater.

Lily was holding Harry's left hand and crying quietly. Kenneth was at the floo, sending word to their closest friends and allies that Harry had returned. Harry was surprised and annoyed to see that Draco was there.

Draco said, "Are you all right, Harry? Can I help?"

Snape snapped, "Go away, Potter. This is a family matter. What is he doing here? Don't tell me he knew where you were staying, Lily. The Dark Lord could have read the address from his little head."

Draco was used to ignoring Snape when he was being unbearably rude to him. Harry and Mrs. Malfoy weren't sending Draco away, so that meant it was OK for him to remain. He would have stayed even if the Malfoys told him to go away. He needed to know that Harry was all right. Harry was now looking at the floor to avoid having to look at Draco or his mother.

"I'm here because I care about Harry," Draco said. "I don't care if Voldemort made him take the Dark Mark. And if Harry was the one who cast the killing curse on that Death Eater yesterday morning, I don't care. Are you all right, Harry?"

"What else have you found out?" Harry asked. He sounded startlingly normal, not weak from being brutally tortured or traumatized by the unspeakable things he saw committed in the last twenty-four hours. He still didn't look up from the floor, and he wasn't very happy to see Draco there, but he probably didn't want anyone there at all.

Kenneth closed the floo for privacy and asked Snape, "Who did Harry kill? James Potter heard from Sirius Black that a Death Eater was killed."

"A recent recruit, Gideon Carter," Snape said, "a disposable non-entity that the Dark Lord instructed to disarm Harry. It was a trap, of course. The Dark Lord wanted blackmail material. Carter won't be missed. His family will be too happy he's gone to make any trouble."

Harry raised his head while Snape coolly discussed the man he had killed. He was watching his mother and Draco's reactions to this new information. He needed reassurance from them, the two people who loved him the most, that he would be forgiven. He should know by now that Draco would support him, no matter what he did.

"The important thing is that you escaped," Draco said, and Harry almost smiled. Yes, he understood that Draco still would love him.

Lily was the wife of a Dark wizard and a skilled fighter herself, but she was still uncomfortable with the idea of her family killing people. She stood up and said, "We should have sent Harry away last summer. The Nakamura family in Osaka will take him. They control the Japanese Ministry of Magic, and they will get Harry a pardon for using an Unforgivable in self-defense."

Japan? Draco had never even heard of wizards in Japan. He thought that most of the Malfoys' allies were in Central Europe.

"No, Mother," Harry said. "I'm not abandoning Father and you. This is my war, too."

"It would be an honor to marry into the Nakamura family," Snape said. "They will send for your parents if you asked." Draco wanted to be angry with him for giving bad advice, but Snape cared about Harry very much and he must genuinely be afraid for him.

Harry shook his head. "What about you, sir? And Draco and Hermione and everyone else? I can't leave you with the Dark Lord. I can fight him. I hate him, and I am going to help Draco kill him."

"You won't save all of us, even if you stay. You have pledged yourself to Albus's Order and to Voldemort. Both will expect you to do the impossible, and if you fail, you will be fortunate if you join your father in Azkaban." Snape was speaking from experience. But why should Harry have to take orders from Voldemort? He didn't want to be a Death Eater. It wasn't fair.

"Your father wants you to accept the Nakamura family's offer," Lily said. "He said so before his hearing. It did not go well for us. He was denied bail."

"I know. The Dark Lord read me the court's decision before the hearing began. He is controlling the trial. He will have Father sentenced to the Dementor's Kiss if I fail him."

Lily was the only one very upset or surprised by that revelation. Did she ever expect her husband to have a fair trial? Draco wondered whether Voldemort was also controlling whoever was writing the anti-Malfoy slander in the 'Daily Prophet'. Probably.

Snape was more concerned about something else Harry had said. "Fail him in what? Has the Dark Lord already given you a mission?"

"Yes, and I cannot talk about it. If I fail, the Dark Lord will kill my parents."

"I'd like to see him try," Lily said, especially murderously. She was one of the most powerful witches of her generation, and even Voldemort would hesitate to attack her.

"Father can't protect himself," Harry said. "He doesn't even have a wand. The Dark Lord will send his people to kill him in Azkaban, unless he waits to sentence Father to the Kiss."

"We'll hire our own guards for Lucius," Lily said. "We'll set up a tent on Azkaban and guard the entire place ourselves if we need to, until we can free Lucius legally."

Snape said, "Your friends won't let you do anything so foolish, Lily. Lucius has more lives than a kneazle. The Dark Lord should have killed him at least a dozen times before now. The important thing is to keep Harry and you safe and alive. Go to the Nakamura family."

"The Order will look after you," Draco said.

Harry shook his head miserably and said, "I don't think the Order will want me now. Not with this," and he began to pull up his left sleeve. Snape stopped him, but they all knew what he must have tattooed on his arm.

"If you refuse to go to Japan, I will tell Dumbledore everything myself. He must be told that you are Marked," Snape said. "Please, Harry, promise me that you will seriously think about leaving Europe. The Dark Lord cannot use the Mark to control you over long distances."

"I'll tell you my decision tomorrow," Harry said. "I haven't slept since the Death Eaters took me. Thank you for bringing me home, Professor."

The interrogation was over, and Harry was allowed to go to his bedroom and sleep. Draco followed him. The cupboard under the stairs opened into Harry's bedroom with all his books again.

"I slept here last night," Draco said. "I hope you don't mind."

Harry turned a handle on one of the bookcases and it swung open to reveal a bathroom. "That's fine. Were you here all day?" He turned on the taps and washed his face. Draco stayed in the bedroom and looked for other hidden doors.

"Yes, while your mum was at the Ministry for your dad's hearing."

"You must have been very bored."

"I had company. Your cousin isn't that bad once you get to know him."

Harry came out of the bathroom and said, "You spent all day with _Dudley_? Without using any Unforgivables on him?" He laughed, and so did Draco, even though he suspected that Harry was serious about using Unforgivables on his cousin. Harry walked over to another bookshelf and opened it with another secret handle. Here was his clothes wardrobe.

"Dudley and I get along. We're friends now. I think your aunt likes me, too, even though she pretends not to. She gave us biscuits. She was interested when I told her about house elves. Maybe you should bring one of your family's elves here to help her out around the house. I didn't talk much with your uncle. He told me to go home, but Dudley said that I could stay."

"Maybe you're right about your legendary Potter charm." Harry brought out a pair of pajamas and a plain silver armband. Draco could feel the armband's Dark magic from across the room.

"What's that?"

"The Malfoy Prophecy Armband, only to be used in the most dire of circumstances and at extreme personal risk to the user," Harry recited from unknown and unseen warning labels. "I took it out of the family vault at the beginning of the summer. I thought I might need it. Circumstances are dire. The user has been in extreme personal risk ever since he turned sixteen."

"What does it do?"

"Gives life-altering prophecies. Father used it when he was my age. It completely muddled his life, and he swore never to use it again. My life can't become any more muddled than it is already."

"Do you have to follow what it says?"

"Of course. It shows the future. Maybe it will tell me I have to go to the Nakamura family in Japan. Or be a double-agent like Professor Snape and Father. Or go in business with Neville Longbottom and spend my day gardening."

There were many other options for what Harry's future could hold, and Draco didn't want to think about them. The Malfoy Prophecy Armband could be very dangerous. People not trained in Divination often misinterpreted visions and prophecies. It wasn't easy to meddle with the future. It wasn't a good idea in general to make major life decisions using Dark artifacts. But Harry seemed to think that the Malfoy Prophecy Armband was the key to solving his dilemma, and Draco wouldn't stop him.

Harry threw his Death Eater robe onto the floor and began to change into his pajamas. "Do you want to see the Mark?" he asked Draco. "I'll ask Professor Snape and Mum to create a new spell to hide it tomorrow." He took off his shirt and showed Draco his left forearm.

The Mark was hideous. It was a black tattoo stinking of Dark domination/submission magic. It sent a psychic warning of Death, for its possessor and for all those who saw it. Draco tried to hide his disgust in front of Harry – it was Harry's arm and he didn't have a choice when he accepted it – but Harry could guess what sort of thoughts Draco was having.

Then Draco remembered his Divination lessons, and he knew what he could do to make the Mark less ugly. The best way to counter Death magic was with Love. He bent over and kissed the Mark. He was pleased that the magic changed slightly and trembled at his Purity, Hope, Love, Innocence, and all the other good things that Light magic is supposed to be full of.

Harry lowered his arm and put on his pajama top. "What was that for?" he asked. He must have felt the change in magic, too. He quickly put on his pajama bottoms.

"That was Light magic. It helped, didn't it?"

"Yes. That was strange. Now go home and let me sleep."

"Pleasant dreams," Draco said, as he watched Harry put the silver armband around his right arm.

* * *

_Dear Draco,_

_Please give the enclosed letter to your father when your mother is not around. It is absolutely imperative that she does not see it before your father has a chance to consider my offer. _

_You and I will marry on a summer afternoon (next year? the year after? how do you date visions?) in the muggle city hall in Islington. I will wear a white dress and minimal glamours to pass as a woman. Our witnesses will be my mother, your mother, Hermione, and Ginny Weasley. Otherwise I will lose you forever, and I cannot let that happen._

_Close your eyes and think of England. There are worse fates. I'm not that bad once you get to know me. I'll look terrific in my wedding dress._

_Harry._

* * *

(Author's Note: Thanks for reading and extra thanks for your reviews.) 


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